Household hazardous waste (HHW) is not defined in EU or UK
legislation, although various, often opaque, references are made to
it in the text of the Hazardous Waste Directive and the European
Waste Catalogue, both transposed into UK regulations. HHW
consists of a range of waste streams, some of which have been the
subject of specific legislation, possessing a number of hazardous
properties. Whilst separately collected fractions of HHW are
considered hazardous, this classification does not apply to HHW
co-discarded with general non-hazardous municipal waste. HHW is
affected by an array of new legislation that will have consequences
for both the composition of HHW (e.g. render it less hazardous) and
how it is disposed of once collected. Currently in the UK, most HHW
is co-disposed to MSW landfills where it contributes to leachate
formation, although leachate collection/treatment and natural
attenuation help mitigate environmental effects should the engi-
neered landfill barriers fail. However, changes to the Landfill
Directive may lead to a proportional increase in HHW as well as
changes to the formation and composition of leachate. Alternative
disposal methods may need to be evaluated, including the separate
disposal of HHW from MSW. This might lead to the need for specific
policy/legislation requiring separate collection of HHW from point
of discard. Improved public awareness, especially through labelling,
would then be necessary as current mechanisms are insufficient.
HHW must therefore be considered when evaluating the conse-
quences that current and new waste legislation have on the
environment.