Publications and guidance

This page provides links to sources of information and guidance on health and safety in the waste management and recycling industries.

Asbestos

• Safe handling of asbestos waste at civic amenity (CA) sites - (WASTE07)
• Asbestos website

Chemical waste

• Chemical waste treatment
• REACH News Alert 12 May 2010
• REACH guidance on waste and recovered substances

Falls from height (general)

• Height safe - Absolutely essential health and safety information for people who work at height
• Inspecting fall arrest equipment made from webbing or rope (INDG367)

General

• Stay clean - stay healthy: Looking after your health in the waste/recycling industry (INDG415]
• Health hazards in the waste and recycling industry (Waste15)
• Work equipment and machinery
• Supplying new machinery: a short guide (INDG270)
• Buying new machinery: a short guide (INDG271)
• Providing and using work equipment safely: A brief guide (INDG291)
• Do you use a steam/water pressure cleaner? (INDG68)
• Five steps to risk assessment (INDG163)
• Management of Health and Safety at Work
• Workplace Health, Safety and Welfare
• Risk assessment

Health

• Managing offensive/hygiene waste WASTE22
• Handling Needles in the Waste and Recycling Industry (WASTE19)

Industry specific

• Storing hazardous wastes at household waste recycling centres (WASTE12)
• Designing and operating material recycling facilities (MRFs) safely (WASTE13)
• Waste Industry Safety and Health - reducing the risks (INDG359)
• Health and safety training: Guidelines for the waste management and recycling industry (Waste21)

Landfill

• Landfill fires - controlling the risk
• Environmental Services Association DSEAR Codes of Practice

Machinery

• Compaction equipment: User and public safety WASTE08
• Baling machine guidance can be found in section 8 of INDG392 - recover paper safely (INDG 392)
• Crushing

Managing health and safety

• Managing 'task and finish' to reduce safety risks (WASTE17) [177KB)

Manual handling and musculoskeletal disorders

• Conveyor belt workstation design
• Manual Handling: Guidance on the Regulations
• Upper Limb Disorders in the Workplace
• Manual handling: solutions you can handle
• HSE Manual handling website
• Magnetic lifting devices

Metal recycling and motor vehicle dismantling

• Lead and you (INDG 305)
• How to reduce exposure to dioxins in aluminium recycling (INDG377)
• Is it explosive? Dangers of explosives in metal recycling (INDG335)
  • Is it explosive? dangers of explosives in metal recycling (INDG335p poster)
• A guide to the handling and storage of airbags and seat belt pretensioners at garages and motor vehicle repair workshops (INDG280)
• Safe use of petrol in garages (INDG331)
• Safe working with vehicle air-conditioning systems (INDG349)
• Hot work on vehicle wheels (Engineering Information Sheet No. 1)
• Using electric storage batteries safely (INDG 139)
• Working with Nickel - are you at risk? (INDG351)
• Safe working with LPG-fuelled motor vehicles (INDG387)
• The safe recovery of petrol from end-of-life vehicles (WASTE10)
• Magnetic lifting devices

Guidance on work with liquefied petroleum fuelled vehicles (autogas) can be found on the LPGA website.

Noise

• Reducing 'kerbside' glass collection noise risks in the waste and recycling industry

Paper recycling

• Guidance for the Recovered Paper Industry (INDG392)

Plastics waste and recycling

• Plastics Recycling - Plastics Processing Sheet No 2 PPIS2
• Fire and explosion risks from pentane in expandable polystyrene (EPS) PPIS1

Slips and trips (general)

• Preventing slips and trips at work: A brief guide (INDG225)
• HSE Slips and Trips website

Transport (general)

• Managing Vehicle Safety at the Workplace (INDG199)
• Driving at work: Managing work-related road safety (INDG382)
• Research report RR018 - Management of work related road safety
• Research report RR020 - The contribution of individual factors to driving behaviour: implications for managing work-related road safety

Transport (industry-specific)

• Hook loader vehicles: Applicability of Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER) 
• Safe transport in waste management and recycling facilities - (WASTE09)
• Sheeting/Unsheeting tipper lorries
• Skip and container safety in waste management and recycling (WASTE06)
• Safe use of skip loaders (INDG378)

Waste Collection

• People in commercial waste containers (WASTE25)
• Safe waste and recycling collection services (WASTE23)
• Safety at 'bring-sites' in the waste management and recycling industry (WASTE11)
• Hand sorting of recyclables ("totting") with vehicle assistance (WASTE18)
• Operating Civic Amenity Sites Safely (WASTE01)
• Orphaned compressed gas cylinders in the waste and recycling industries (WASTE03)
• Green waste collection - health issues (WASTE02)
• Waste and Recycling Vehicles in Street Collection (WASTE04)
• The safe use of refuse collection vehicle hoists and bins (WASTE05)