Study on "Implementation report for Directive 2006/21/EC2 on the management of waste from extractive industries (Mining Waste Directive)" : final report

The Directive 2006/21/EC on the treatment of waste from the extractive industries, also called the mining waste Directive (MWD), requires Member States to report to the Commission on their national implementation in three-year intervals based on a questionnaire developed by the Commission in Commission Decision 2009/358/EC (Article 18 (1) of the MWD). In order to support the European Commission in publishing a report on the implementation of the MWD, the present study analyses the completeness of the Member States' (MS) responses to the questionnaire and draws conclusions with respect to the level of transposition of the MWD into national law in the respective MS. The MWD's main objective is to provide for "measures, procedures and guidance to prevent or reduce as far as possible any adverse effects on the environment, in particular water, air, soil, fauna and flora and landscape, and any resultant risks to human health, brought about as a result of the management of waste from the extractive industries." Therefore, the main provisions for the management of waste resulting directly from the prospecting, extraction, treatment and storage of mineral resources and the working of quarries relate to Category "A" waste facilities and facilities for waste characterised as hazardous. This is, because according to Annex III those facilities could give rise to a major accident with adverse environmental or health related consequences, contain hazardous waste above a certain threshold, or contain dangerous substances or preparations above a certain threshold.