Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2020/248Show full title

Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2020/248

of 21 February 2020

laying down technical guidelines for inspections in accordance with Article 17 of Directive 2006/21/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council

(notified under document C(2020) 889)

(Text with EEA relevance)

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Directive 2006/21/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 March 2006 on the management of waste from extractive industries and amending Directive 2004/35/EC(1), and in particular Article 22(1)(c) thereof,

Whereas:

(1) Article 17 of Directive 2006/21/EC requires inspections of any waste facility covered by Article 7 in that Directive in order to ensure that it complies with the relevant conditions of the permit. In order for those inspections to be efficient and effective, competent authorities should be appropriately resourced, independent from the operators of the waste facilities concerned, vested with the necessary functions and powers and entitled to assistance from operators. Inspection activities should also involve co-operation and co-ordination between national authorities responsible for ensuring that waste facilities in their jurisdiction comply with the provisions set out in Directive 2006/21/EC.

(2) In order for the inspections to be efficient and proactive, it is appropriate that they are planned in advance by means of inspection plans reflecting the risks presented by the waste facilities concerned.

(3) As the waste facilities covered by Article 7 of Directive 2006/21/EC include waste facilities which ought to have a permit and, as Article 7 provides that no waste facility should operate without a permit, it is necessary for the inspection plans to take account of those waste facilities which ought to have a permit but do not hold one.

(4) Member States should retain a margin of discretion in the application of the inspection guidelines having regard to the different circumstances of each waste facility, to ensure that inspections are proportionate to the relevant environmental and safety risks presented by each waste facility.

(5) In order to address different situations of possible non-compliance with permits, provision should be made for both routine inspections and non-routine inspections to respond to serious complaints, accidents, incidents and occurrences of non-compliance. When carrying out the inspections, the inspectors should also take account of the findings of inspections carried out under other applicable EU legislation to the extent that those findings may also indicate possible problems with the permit requirements under Article 7 of Directive 2006/21/EC.

(6) In order to ensure the effectiveness of the inspections, it is necessary that a certain proportion of inspection activities, and in particular site visits, are unannounced.

(7) In order to make it possible to draw conclusions from inspection activities, in particular site visits, and to provide an empirical basis for future inspections and other related measures, it is important that all inspection activities are properly documented, including through regular site visit reports.

(8) In order to effectively ensure compliance with permit conditions, it is important that inspections facilitate and enable any further measures to respond to detected non-compliance.

(9) Given that risks vary depending on the stage of existence of the concerned waste facilities, it is necessary that the technical guidelines contain detailed provisions concerning the different life phases of waste facilities covered by Article 7 of Directive 2006/21/EC.

(10) Given that Category A waste facilities pose potentially higher risks, it is necessary that the technical guidelines contain specific provisions in respect of such facilities.

(11) The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee established in accordance with Article 23(2) of Directive 2006/21/EC,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

(1)

OJ L 102, 11.4.2006, p. 15.