ECJ JUDGEMENT ON WASTE FROM MINING OPERATIONS

摘要

A recent judgment by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) confirms a previous ruling on the definition of waste in relation to mining waste. The mining industry faces the threat of increased costs for dealing with "byproducts" of mineral extraction. In a ruling (Case C-114/01 AvestaPolarit Chrome Oy), delivered on 11 September, the EC) stated that the holder of leftover rock and residual sand from ore-dressing operations at a mine discards or intends to discard those substances. As a consequence, this material must be classified as waste unless it is used as infill for mining galleries and sufficient guarantees are provided as to the identification and actual use of the material to be used for that purpose.