Waste Duty of Care: How Robust WAC Testing Protects Your Business

UK waste legislation places a clear Duty of Care on producers. If you generate waste on a construction or infrastructure project, you remain responsible for ensuring it is correctly described, handled and sent to an appropriate facility. Landfill or treatment operators will share that responsibility, but they can only work with the information they receive.

High‑quality WAC Testing is a key part of demonstrating that you have met this Duty of Care. Alongside classification, it shows that you have considered how the waste will behave in the long term at the chosen facility and that you are not simply relying on a “best guess” EWC code to justify a disposal route.

In practice, regulators and landfill operators increasingly expect to see a joined‑up evidence pack: site investigation results, waste classification calculations, WAC results, chain‑of‑custody records and a paper trail showing how decisions were made. Where that pack exists, it becomes much easier to defend your position if a load is questioned or if an audit picks up historic anomalies.

EnviroSolution helps clients by designing proportionate testing and documentation strategies. Our reports clearly state how samples were selected, which parameters were tested, and how the results map against landfill acceptance criteria. Treating WAC Testing as part of your compliance framework – rather than an optional extra – strengthens your position with regulators, clients and supply chain partners alike.