SOME INFORMATION ON ENFORCEMENT CONCERNING SOLID AND HAZARDOUS WASTES DISPOSAL IN CZECHOSLOVAKIA

KAREL VELEK

Czechoslovak Society for Environment

The theme of discussion includes Solid and Hazardous Wastes and the actual situation in compliance with and enforcement of current laws and regulations. To understand this problem better, however, it would be useful to compare it with other environmental media, especially with the problem of water and air protection.

CSFR with its 15 million inhabitants comprises of two republics and has been governed by 100 district councils representing the state government institutions. Even in this single fact there is something new: only four years ago there existed the two-level system of management under which the concept and special programs were being operated by relatively well equipped regional government institutions of 10 regions (7 of them belonging to the Czech and 3 to the Slovak republic). The Public Health Service, for example, has maintained its two-level system of management of regional laboratories including the possibility of appealing against the decision of a district public health officer to the regional public health officer. The district councils have established their own environmental departments analogous to those in larger cities. Even the small communities have their officials commissioned with executing the environmental policy. Their number and qualification considerably differs between particular districts. In former seats of regional authorities there were sometimes some 20 university or high school graduated professionals on water management (it was the strongest group), air pollution, preservation of natural resources and forests and on wastes disposal management.

Due to the geographical reasons (our inland situation determines that with the exception of Danube practically all the rivers spring in CSFR and flow out of the country as well as due to the historical reasons considerable adjustments of the river flows and to some extend also certain wastewater treatment covering wastewaters from towns and industry were necessary as early as at the beginning of this century. The Hydrological Institute of T. G. Masaryk employing more than a hundred professionals existed before the Second World War already. Together with the work of the Hydrometeorological Institute and on the large administrative areas operating government authorities this structure provided for a relatively highly qualified system of management. In the 50ies, the laws and regulations on water preservation were passed and the headquarters and regional inspectorates for state water management inspection were established. Also established were the headquarters for water basins management. In that time, this concept was a very progressive one. This type of organization was known even in the U.S.A., for example, where it was being made use of by several interstate water management agencies responsible for managing river basins in case rivers were forming borders between the U. S. states and it was expected to be more efficient to manage particular river basins as a whole.

Due to the reckless development of heavy industry pushed ahead in accordance with a doubtful idea that Czechoslovakia should have become a "steel heart of the socialist camp" and consequently due to a considerable neglect and transfer of water preservation among minor, second-class problems an overall deterioration of water quality in rivers and basins occurred and in a number of locations even serious damage and threat to the underground waters appeared (Bratislava, Ostrava). Even among the hydrologists the situation prevailed that constructors of dams were clearly being given preference. These often undervalued and even suppressed the endeavors of their colleagues-hydrologists aiming at water treatment etc. This may apply, for example, to the first objections against Gabgikovo-Nagymaros waterworks at the beginning of 60ies.

I am mentioning this history in details on purpose because it demonstrates the fact that even under the relatively qualified state authorities, with the existing strict water treatment standards and subject to the objections of non-governmental organizations (NGO), that is, the fishermen and environmental activists (however, they were not allowed to protest too loudly) practically all our rivers have become polluted up to the degree III and IV. Industries as well as the socialist agricultural enterprises easily got the exception status when they were not complying with the requirements to build wastewater treatment plants. Those were, anyway, financed both mostly and insufficiently from state budget.

Probably even more undesirable situation applied to the air pollution. In this area, not earlier than in the 70ies it was decided that the Ministry of Forest and Water Management (that preferred to operate rather as a production department) should have been responsible also for air pollution monitoring and control).

Denial of the basic principles of heat and electricity using in industry and to a certain extent even in agriculture and towns (e.g. poorly isolated prefabricated blocks of flats and infrastructures) resulted in the fact that together with the former GDR we find ourselves not only at the leading position in per capita energy consumption but also among the countries suffering the worst air pollution. At the same time, the concentration of energy production based on burning coal containing sulfur in the area of Podkrunoho in Northern Bohemia contributed considerably to a critical state of pollution in these particular areas. As even in big cities there is a high number of places heated by coal containing 2-3% of sulfur and only in 1993 the cars belonging to firms and not having catalyzers will not be allowed to the centers of Praha and Karlovy Vary, air pollution has been regarded to be our most serious environmental problem.

In 1971 the first attempts were made to prepare The Law on wastes under the condition that the Ministry of Forest and Waster Management would have been equipped appropriately for the control, inspection and management of wastes. The original draft of this law was returned back to the authors in a way that the top ministerial officials of that time did not dare to try to push it ahead any more. Officially it was due to formal reasons but most probably it was refused because the reasoned statement in fact openly put down requirements for large investments into the higher-quality sanitary landfills, incinerators, etc. Only more than ten years later (when all the Western European countries had updated their laws on wastes once or twice already) another round of negotiations started concerning the possibility of passing the law. Anyway, the suggested idea was rather simplifying the problem reducing it first of all to the possibility of obtaining significant source of raw materials. The law was even intended to concern just the secondary raw materials and thus it was the Ministry of Industries that was commissioned to prepare its draft.

In that time the efforts of NGO played a considerable role which was a predecessor of currently existing Czechoslovak Society for Environment, whose Working Group for Wastes elaborated and later on, during the two national conferences, also approved the basic principles for the Waste Disposal Act. This draft including the provisions on prevention, reuse and disposal of wastes as well as on some principles concerning state government authorities was accepted to a considerable extent. But the complex solution came not before the drafts were prepared after the 1989 revolution having been submitted by the Ministry of Environment and Federal Committee for Environment and supported by the Slovak Commission for Environment that was established later on. It is necessary to mention within this introductory part that in the period of 1990-92 the environmental responsibilities in Czechoslovakia have been divided among the Federal Committee for Environment (which is responsible - besides the responsibility for nuclear power stations - for various national programs and for the whole agenda of international relations and cooperation), the Czech Ministry of Environment and the Slovak Commission for Environment, the latter two being the executive authorities. The Czech Department governs, with the help of its 12 territorial divisions (regional offices) 70 district councils, e.g. their environmental departments.

To show how compliance and enforcement should be realized I am mentioning The Principles of Current legislation. The Act No. 238 of 22nd May 1991 (1) on Wastes includes definition of basic terms. It includes the principles similar to those of EC and to a considerable extent even to those valid in Austria and Germany (definition of wastes, hazardous wastes, waste-producer, or waste disposal).

The Basic Provision maintains that both the legal and natural persons are obliged to prevent waste generation and create conditions for its reuse and processing. Legal and natural persons are obliged to carry out these activities solely within the facilities that have been designed for this purpose.

Any import of waste to be disposed of on the territory of the Czech and Slovak Federative Republic is prohibited. The ban does not apply provided the following conditions are fulfilled at the same time:

• The waste import is based on a contract on providing the Czechoslovak partner with a verified and already realized disposal technology meeting the world scientific and technical standards.
• All the imported waste will be disposed of while simultaneously the total amount or the degree of harmfulness of similar wastes produced in our country will be reduced.
• Import, transport and storage of such wastes are allowed only if approved by the Czech Ministry of Environment or analogous authority in the Slovak Republic. The above mentioned authorities have established special commissions for considering such imports.

Similarly, there is a ban on exporting hazardous wastes without a written consent of both importing and transit countries.

The duties of legal and natural persons related to waste management have been set by the law on the level of republics (2) that defines the role of state administration in waste management and has been the main tool for compliance and enforcement.

The highest authority within the state administration responsible for environmental issues is the Ministry of Environment of the Czech Republic that reserves the right of final supervision as for the elaboration of the waste disposal programs on the republic level and the right to decide about the import, export or transit of wastes.

The Czech (Slovak in the Slovak Republic) Environmental Inspection (3) has been monitoring compliance with the legal regulations concerning wastes management both within other bodies of state administration and legal and natural persons involved in waste management activities. The inspection can impose penalties in accordance with the Act on Wastes that may range between 10,000 and 300,000 crowns (that is, 1 00 times a 1991 average salary) in case the waste generator :

· does not elaborate a consistent waste management scheme

· fails to secure a source-sorted waste collection

· does not ensure waste utilization or disposal of the wastes

· does not keep records on wastes in accordance with a special code of conduct (4)

· does not label properly the products or their covers from the point of view of their recycling or elimination.

The penalty from 20 000 up to 500 000 crowns can be charged in case the generator:

· does not allow access of checking authorities into the processing (storing) facilities or does not submit the necessary waste management documentation or even does not provide true and full information

· performs waste collection, purchase, processing or elimination without being licensed for that or violates the provisions of the license, acts without having the approved rules of conduct or handles the wastes outside the approved facilities.

The penalty from 100,000 up to 10 million crowns can be charged when the most serious violations of law occur, especially in these cases:

· the regulations on waste import and export has been violated

· the hazardous wastes are not collected and stored separately or are not manipulated in accordance with the special regulations of the Public Health Office concerning protection of public health

· the waste generator does not fulfill the obligation to notify and report to the authorities and does not keep records on liquidation of hazardous wastes

· hazardous waste is being transported without permission or the transporter violates the permission

· the waste generator does not respect the order of state authorities charging him/her with the duty to eliminate, in exceptionally urging cases and in the interest of the public, the wastes in his/her own facility capable of doing so.

The Inspection, at the same time, sets terms and conditions for bringing the violator to compliance. The Inspections offer a qualified help to the local (district) authorities.

The inspection is managed from the Headquarters and has 8 regional inspectorates in the Czech Republic. Similarly, an analogous Headquarters of regional inspectorates is being established in the Slovak Republic. In the Czech Republic, the Wastes Division employs 49 persons including administration personnel.

Inspection is thus the main authority responsible for enforcement. It came into being in 1991 when it was officially established. In the mean time it has still been gathering knowledge being derived especially from the many years of experience of the Division for Water Protection and the Division for Air Protection.

The main state administration authorities responsible for compliance are the district councils.

The districts in Czechoslovakia have an average 150 000 inhabitants. According to the

Federal Act on Wastes and legislation of the republics on the state administration the District

Council

a) approves waste management programs according to the Decree No. 401/91 (5)

b) grants approval to

1. facilities engaged in wastes elimination

2. hazardous wastes disposal

3. issuing the Operating Instructions for waste processing

4. business in waste handling

In case of not meeting the conditions or violating the regulations the District Council may withdraw its approval.

c) makes statements on

1. establishing waste elimination facilities

2. waste management plants construction and building of other waste management related facilities already in the stage of the building scheme or its change (e.g. the first step of project documentation)

3. changes in waste management related technological processes

d) controls compliance with the decisions aimed at suppressing the law-violating activities

e) is authorized to use enforcement measures as well as to set terms for bringing the violator to compliance, it is also authorized to stop the activities contributing to waste generation if there was a danger of a serious environmental damage. The District Council is also authorized to charge penalties thus being authorized to practice enforcement. The district councils represent at the same time a sort of concept-making bodies as they are commissioned to work out waste management programs on the district level based on the programs of producers and communities.

At this point it is necessary to mention that the claims determined by the given duties (and it is far not the full account of them) highly exceed the possibilities of managing them given the existing number and qualification of the district councils' personnel.

Extremely important from the point of view of compliance is elaboration of the waste management programs of producers who may be legal and natural persons conducting waste generating activities as well as communities on the territory of which the municipal waste is being generated. According to the Decree of the Czech National Council No. 401/91 of 16th August 1991 (5) each producer generating more than 100 tons of wastes a year or more than 50 kilograms of hazardous wastes is obliged to elaborate, until 31st August 1992, a program for the period of 1992-97. According to the above mentioned Decree and in compliance with the Federal Act on Wastes and the Republic Act on State Administration, this document should be approved by the district council. In accordance with the general rules of conduct this should be as any other application settled within 30 days. As it is clear from the following text, this task is most probably not viable within the given term and strictly for all the waste generators of whom may be even several thousands. That is why the exception is possible and the authorities may not necessarily be obliged to comply with the given term. Such a situation is mentioned also in the Case Study 2 in Principles of Environmental enforcement. It concerns the situation when the Dutch regional authorities were not able to ensure, due to the lack of qualified personnel, that all the wrecker yards detected would be inspected properly and in time and thus they had to accommodate the original plan while hiring more personnel for meeting their goals.

The purpose of the legislative institutions is to ensure through the programs elaboration

· the basic identification data on the generator or community

· analytical data concerning wastes quantity and quality including the data on their generation

· elaboration of the proposals for reducing, utilization and elimination of wastes

· bringing under control all the relevant documentation related to the executive authorities.

The main identification data include:

· for the generators: Characteristics of the enterprise and its establishments (subsidiaries) which is far from being easy to gather, for example, in case of the state railways, the networks of bus transportation, the distributors of motor fuels, etc. Characteristics of the production processes including determination of basic problems of waste management.

· for communities: Characteristics of the community, its representatives and responsible persons, basic information on the community, data on the quantity and structure of wastes generated, information on dump sites, the list of legal and natural persons engaged in waste disposal within the community, information on preserved, green belts and other environmental interests.

The main analytical data include:

· for the generators: the review of production sites where the wastes are being generated, may be utilized or eliminated. The wastes generated have to be, and that is very much demanding, sorted according to the Catalogue and categorization of wastes (6) which is practically identical as for the sorting and codes of wastes with the categorization used in Germany - e.g. the LAGA Catalogue - or with the catalogue used in Austria. In an enterprise where several tens of waste types are being generated and a proper evidence including weighting of the wastes has not yet been executed it is rather a difficult issue. Determination of some waste types is subject to the interpretation - that means the responsible personnel must decide whether some waste will be regarded as hazardous (the records about this type of waste will have to be kept if more than 50 kilograms of it a year are being generated) or just as others (in this case recordkeeping is obligatory when more than 100 tons of such a waste is being generated). As some confusions still exist, new amendments to categorization including instructions on interpretation are being worked out currently. The Terminological Norm (7) is going to be an important aid. It will present definitions of the most frequent terms including their English, German, Russian and French equivalents. This norm should be elaborated during this year if the plan is met.

· Contemporary experience suggests that responsible determination of quantity (in case of wastes and sludge it is necessary to know the contents of water) will be a difficult task for many enterprises and even more demanding will be the control of correctness of these data. During the single detailed statistical investigation in 1987 (the wastes having been sorted into approximately 400 groups according to their composition) various misunderstandings, mistakes and even concealments of some types of wastes occurred. These occurred despite the then Federal Statistical Bureau and State Planning Commission had issued a very detailed and voluminous instruction at that occasion (cca. 60-page guidelines).

· for communities, the data and conditions concerning collecting communal wastes are given.

Survey of wastes concerns the originating, utilized and temporary and finally deposited wastes sorted into the groups of hazardous, special (e.g. important from the point of view of national economy) and others. It also concerns some special points on handling these wastes, security conditions and fire protection. The survey further concerns the data on non-waste generating technologies and recycling in production and description of facilities for elimination of wastes run by the producers (dump sites, incinerators, waste sorting and processing facilities including the technical parameters and quantities of processed wastes of their own or of other subjects). The survey and characteristics of not already used dump sites is given on this place, too, mentioning the quantities and characteristics of deposited wastes and the state of reclamation or rescue of these old dump sites. All this should provide the first systematic review of this type of contaminated sites. Also mentioned are the costs of processing and elimination of wastes as well as the information on self-monitoring reports of the enterprises and on how these data are being submitted to the competent state authorities in accordance with the government Decree on Waste Reporting (4).

The designing part represents the purpose of the program itself and includes the organizational and technological measures aimed at reducing waste generation, its sorting, material and energy utilization and waste liquidation. It is also necessary to keep in mind the supposed changes in production especially with regard to the attenuation programs the purpose of which is to close down out-dated facilities and gradually change over to the more effective and energy and material less demanding types of production with lower waste generation.

The documentary part includes copies of decisions of the competent authorities concerning waste management programs of the generators, records on prospective controls, etc. The generator must add the statement of the respective local council (including his/her own analysis and objections in case he/she does not agree with the opinion of the local council). Included within the documentary part will be later on also the approval of the respective local council as well as information on possible changes incorporated into the program on the basis of demands of the respective authority.

Generally it is supposed that the district (local) authorities can decide about granting the producers special conditions, e.g. relaxation about handling the wastes for a certain period of time necessary for accommodation to the new conditions if these are not able, in time the program is being elaborated, to fulfill the duties set by the law. Such relaxations may apply only for a period up to five years since the Act on Wastes has entered into effect, e.g. until 1 996.

The waste management program for the district is being constructed differently. Besides the introductory part describing the characteristic features of the district, the survey of wastes generated, utilized and eliminated has been included in the analytical part using the system of sorting wastes into the groups of special, hazardous, other and communal wastes which is in accordance with the catalogue and categorization of wastes.

The survey of waste generators is also included as well as the characteristics of the wastes generated and the survey of communities generating communal wastes including the analysis of how they are being handled. Similarly, the survey of waste collecting and processing facilities within the district is referred to including their technical and operational parameters. The not yet resolved problems are also mentioned on this place (the problems of capacity, efficiency, financing, administration, etc.).

The designing part will contain organizational and investment plans, expected and documented designs for structural changes aimed at reducing waste generation and the program of rescue and reclamation of dump sites. Measures to coordinate activities with other districts will be of special importance.

As an appendix the map should be enclosed on a scale 1:30,000 with the most significant waste generators, facilities, protective zones, etc introduced into this map. Enclosed in the appendix should be also the approved programs of waste generators as well as the programs elaborated for the communities.

Extremely intensive preliminary and committed negotiations are expected to take place during the last quarter of this year. The opinion was voiced several times that the programs should be just taken over by the district councils and approved gradually during the following period of time according to the urgency given, for instance, by the state of preparations of facilities construction, by the necessity to negotiate on common facilities or in case of a serious clash of interests.

Public interest groups, NGO and citizens are expected to comment on the problem and submit important suggestions as everybody has the right to get acquainted with the district programs.

It is clear that at this juncture the complex solution of the task is necessary because it is not possible to set any chronological priorities and solve the problems step by step. The task involves both all the waste generating units and the state administration authorities on the district and local levels as well as a number of officials at the Czech Ministry (or the Slovak Commission) of Environment. Frequent contacts take place currently between the competent officials. The district officials could, for example, meet at a two and a half day long seminar organized by the Czech Ministry of Environment in cooperation with the Czech Society for Environment.

A number of impulses and ideas sprang out from the negotiations, as for example:

• in case of some enterprises with a great number of subsidiaries (or workshops) located over the whole territory of the country it would be useful to negotiate the program in advance on the level of the Wastes Division of the Ministry of Environment. After this division makes a statement on the respective problem, the program will be submitted to the district council in the place where the seat of the headquarters is located (this may apply to the railways, the regional bus transportation services, distribution of motor fuels, etc.). Nevertheless, the statement of the local council where particular units are located will be necessary. According to the Decree No. 401 the district council is obliged to cooperate on elaborating its own district program with waste generators situated on its territory in order to ensure the feedback necessary for obtaining the statement and approval of the district authorities, even though it may include some additional demands.
• first entrepreneurial associations are emerging capable of working out programs applying to multiple communities and sometimes also to multiple production subjects and aiming at resolution at the same time also the problems of funding the construction of the necessary facilities. This concerns especially separated salvage aiming at utilizing at least the basic components of communal wastes (glass, paper, kitchen wastes, etc.) and constructing the dump sites for the rest of the wastes. At the same time the hazardous components that may become a part of communal wastes should be brought under control (e.g. bacteries, fluorescent tubes, remains of chemicals, etc.) The first associations are going to be financed on the share holding principle by the firms and communities aware of the fact that national resources for funding (see information on the Fund for Environment later on) will be highly limited.
• the general concept of hazardous wastes disposal on the whole-republic scale is missing urgently. This will be a part of the Waste Sector Study that is to be worked out within the framework of the project funded by CEC firms Environmental Management (GB), CESL (Portugal) and Dagh Watson (It) until May 1993. The absence of such a concept resulted in the attempts to push through, for instance, a great number of incinerators of hazardous wastes attached to various large industrial enterprises. Anyway, this was fundamentally lacking the complex attitude that would consider addressing such related problems like a complete service aimed at collecting and transporting hazardous wastes on regional level. Foreign experience supports a small number of large-capacity facilities providing services like collection and transportation of hazardous wastes even from a great distance because the share of the cost of transportation represents just a small part of the overall cost. The customers prefer complex services, e.g. the take over of any and all of the hazardous wastes. The problem is that the way of funding of such large facilities has not yet been resolved (this concerns the assessed 50-100 mil. US $) which is expected to be one of the main tasks of the above mentioned study to solve.
• the NIMBY syndrome (Not In My Back Yard) occurs. A number of plans of larger-scale and efficient regional solutions (e.g. processing of old accumulators, processing and deposition of residual wastes coming from the galvanic sludge, incinerating of liquid combustible wastes in cement factories, etc.) are being refused by the local and often even district authorities with the explanation that the authorities are not going to approve "imports of wastes from other sites". This considerably reduces especially the possibilities to use favorable hydrological conditions for building larger regional dump sites equipped according to the European standards as they are applied even within the Decree of the Czech government on the Details Concerning Wastes Handling (9).
• the evaluation of investment plans representing as a whole most probably less efficient solutions than would be represented by the more efficient larger regional facilities, has not yet been coped with sufficiently as for the methods are concerned. The investor can always more easily obtain financial resources ranging from 10 to 30 mil. crowns for building a smaller incinerator of local industrial wastes. Such a facility can usually be easily approved as it intends to burn only the wastes generated within the walls of the particular enterprise or if need be the communal "wastes generated within our own community or district". Anyway, a number of these incinerators do not refine the products of combustion well enough, their chimneys are low and thus it is sure that their specific environmental pollution burden per a ton of combusted waste must be heavier than it would be in case of combusting wastes on the large scale given the permanently controlled facilities.
• from the practical point of view it is not yet clear to what extent will the district and local ministerial divisions create, and thus be contributing to the realization of, regional waste management concepts. In the mean time the idea prevails that they should be preferably engaged in administrative activities, e.g. negotiating the supposed programs, control activities, etc.

The waste management programs in general represent a highly demanding and complex activity that should within a short period of time, some 2-3 years, considerably reduce the scale of our 15-20 years of backwardness behind the legislation and practice regarded as a standard in the developed countries and contribute considerably to the efficiency of compliance and enforcement. The fact that all the officials and scientists engaged in inquiring into the problems of waste handling have been currently engaged in developing, negotiating and control of waste management programs contributes a lot to the increase in their practical knowledge and insight into the problem.

I am going to mention some other legislative regulations exercising an influence upon compliance and enforcement. The Details on Wastes Handling are of a great practical importance (10). They set the principles for handling hazardous wastes, they bring about categorization of wastes for dumping through determination of classes of extracts predetermining the dump sites construction as well as the principles of sealing the dump grounds or reclamation. Originally, the prerequisites concerning covers ought to have been set but this problem will be

solved separately.

The Details will be followed by an even more detailed, recommended Czech and Slovak

State Norm on Wastes Dumping.

The possibility of making use of the support of the Czech Environmental Fund established under the legislation passed by the Czech National Council is very important for compliance (1 0). Similarly, there exists also the Slovak Environmental Fund. The Fund has been a special organization with its own statute, with its director appointed by the Ministry of Environment and with its advisory board - the Council of the Fund - appointed by the minister, too.

In accordance with a special instruction, it is possible to provide means, on the request and in compliance with the statute of the Fund, to support measures aimed at environmental protection and improvement, especially aimed at:

· supporting investment and non-investment activities

· supporting research, development, production of and implementing appropriate technologies

· supporting monitoring environmental media and (ecological) processes

· repayments of installments and interests of loans provided by the Fund (which is a matter typically of non-interest-bearing loans and subsidies)

· supporting educational activities and dissemination of environmental information

Unfortunately, the Fund itself is not that rich. As for the year 1992 some 25 billion crowns were designed mostly for unfinished wastewater treatment plants and air pollution control projects. The share assigned to waste handling projects will be at the disposal not earlier than in 1993 when there will be penalties and fees paid for waste deposits flowing in on the receiving side of the Fund (see later). The Fund has its source of income in:

· fees paid for discharging pollutants into the air and waters

· fees paid for water taking and extracting minerals