Guidance

Accepting filter cake waste from soil and aggregate washing facilities: RPS 336

Published 17 July 2026

Applies to England

This regulatory position statement (RPS) does not change your legal requirement to have an environmental permit.

However, the Environment Agency will not normally take enforcement action against you if you do not comply with this legal requirement provided that:

• your activity meets the description set out in this RPS
• you comply with the conditions set out in this RPS

In addition your activity must not cause (or be likely to cause) pollution of the environment or harm to human health, and must not:

• cause a risk to water, air, soil, plants or animals
• cause a nuisance through noise or odours
• adversely affect the countryside or places of special interest

1. Activity this RPS applies to

This RPS applies when you accept non-hazardous filter cake produced from soil or aggregate washing activities coded as 19 02 06 – sludges from physico/chemical treatment other than those mentioned in 19 02 05* at an operational landfill site or deposit for recovery site.

The waste must meet the waste acceptance criteria for the type of landfill or the deposit for recovery site where waste code 19 02 06 is not included on the permit.

2. Conditions you must comply with

You must:

• notify the Environment Agency before using this RPS by emailing landfill.depositrecovery@environment-agency.gov.uk with ‘RPS 336 filter cake’ in the subject and providing your operator name, permit number, site address and contact email address
• have applied to vary your permit to include waste code 19 02 06 by 1 August 2027
• only accept filter cake from soil and aggregate washing facilities coded as 19 02 06
• only accept filter cake from soil and aggregate washing facilities that are treating non-hazardous wastes
• only accept 19 02 06 filter cake waste that meets your site’s waste acceptance criteria
• update your management system in order to manage wastes you accept under this RPS
• only accept filter cake coded as 19 02 06 where there is evidence that it is non-hazardous waste through sampling and characterisation in line with technical guidance WM3
• comply with the waste duty of care when you accept filter cake

You must not:

• accept hazardous filter cake waste under this RPS
• accept filter cake that is not inert if your permit only allows inert waste
• continue to operate under this RPS if your application to vary your permit is rejected

3. Things to note

‘Filter cake waste’ means the solid mass remaining on a filter after the liquid that contained it has passed through.

‘Soil and aggregate washing facility’ means a facility that is authorised to wash (physically and or chemically) soil and or aggregates to separate fine soil from its larger constituents.

4. When you must check back

The Environment Agency will review this RPS by 31 August 2027.

The Environment Agency can withdraw or amend this regulatory position before the review date if they consider it necessary. This includes where the activity that this RPS relates to has not changed.

You will need to check back from time to time, including at and before the review date, to see if this RPS still applies.

This RPS remains in force until it is removed from GOV.UK or is otherwise identified as having been withdrawn.

You can subscribe to email updates about this RPS. These will tell you if the RPS has changed and when it has been withdrawn. Use the ‘Get emails about this page’ feature on the RPS publication page.

5. If you cannot comply with this RPS

If you operate under this RPS but can no longer comply with it, you must:

• stop the activity to which this RPS relates
• tell the Environment Agency immediately by emailing enquiries@environment-agency.gov.uk with ‘RPS 336 filter cake’ in the subject

6. Contact the Environment Agency

If you have any questions about this RPS, email enquiries@environment-agency.gov.uk with ‘RPS 336 filter cake’ in the subject.