Order issued on waste disposal

Waste must be disposed of at the site designated by Dubai Municipality's Environment Department after the payment of fees.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, UAE Minister of Finance and Industry, and Chairman of Dubai Municipality, has issued a local order amending Local Order No. 7 of 2002 regarding the management of waste disposal sites in Dubai.

Under Local Order No 5 of 2003, which takes effect immediately, the minimum penalty for violating the law will be decreased to D100 from Dh1,000.

Local Order No. 7 of 2002 stipulates that those generate waste must dispose of it only at the site designated by the environment department and after the payment of fees specified.

Handling and final disposal of waste has always been a major responsibility of the municipality.

Despite all efforts made by the municipality to minimise per capita waste generation, it has continued to increase year after year, putting more and more pressure on disposal sites.

The local order, which emphasises on controlling waste disposal activities, is applicable to any person generating, transporting or treating waste. The environment department will seek to issue technical guidelines to cover the details of the order and to develop work procedure to effectively implement its acts.

The order said the municipality is the sole authority to designate or approve sites for waste disposal. It also defines different types of waste, prohibits disposal of waste into sites other than those designated by the environment department. It also prohibits import of any waste in to Dubai for final disposal.

However, the environment department can permit the import of general waste for reuse, recycling or treatment purposes. This shall be done under specific conditions and standards laid down for that purpose by the department.

It said the export of any type of waste without written permit from the environment department is also prohibited.

Also prohibited are unauthorised entry to the site without a valid permit from the environment department, bringing any waste in or out of the department without it, tampering with devices, equipment, records or documents of the site, acts of aggression against employees, authorised guests or workers inside and breach of site instructions and operating procedures, including site entry/exit and waste disposal protocols.

Acts that can lead to work restriction or spread of infectious and harmful agents or that which affect the safety of site personnel, public health or environment are also prohibited.

Depending on the seriousness of the offence, any person who violates the provisions of the order will be fined between Dh100 and Dh100,000. He will also have to compensate for the damages.

For each load of general waste delivered to the disposal site, Dh10 will be charged. A Waste Disposal Certificate will be issued for disposed waste or unwanted products against a fee of Dh250.

The order also said any person performing hazardous waste treatment activity will be charged Dh5 for each tonne of hazardous waste received at his facility.

Whenever found appropriate by the environment department, any of these fees could be overridden by an agreement contract.