Guidance

Waste containing POPs at wastewater treatment works: RPS 357

Published 22 September 2025

Applies to England

This regulatory position statement (RPS) does not change your legal requirement to comply with the conditions of your environmental permit. 

However, the Environment Agency will not normally take enforcement action against you if you do not comply with these legal requirements 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 to permitted waste operations or installation activities where all the following apply: 

• accept, store or treat waste which contains persistent organic pollutants (POPs) 

• discharge waste containing POPs into a wastewater treatment works 

• take place at or adjacent to a wastewater treatment works

• have an environmental permit issued between 1 May 2023 and 31 March 2025

2. Conditions you must comply with 

You must: 

• accept, store or treat wastes which only contain POPs below the thresholds specified within the POPs Regulations  

• discharge wastes which only contain POPs below the thresholds specified within the POPs Regulations into a wastewater treatment works  

• reject wastes which contain POPs above the thresholds specified within the POPs Regulations 

• keep records for 2 years from the date of the last use of the RPS to show that you have complied with this RPS and make these records available to the Environment Agency on request 

You must not: 

• mix or blend POPs waste to dilute concentrations of POPs below the thresholds specified within the POPs Regulations 

3. Things to note 

This RPS corrects an exclusion in waste operation and installation activities at waste water treatment works in permits issued between 1 May 2023 and 31 March 2025. This will be corrected when the permit is next reviewed. 

Wastes, such as landfill leachate, which may contain POPs, will need to be sampled and tested to ensure the waste can be accepted.  

Technical Guidance WM3: Waste Classification – Guidance on the classification and assessment of waste provides guidance to operators on waste classification. 

“POPs Regulations” means the Persistent Organic Pollutants Regulations SI 2007 No.3106. The thresholds for POPs are specified in Identify and classify waste containing persistent organic pollutants published on 19 December 2022 and updated on 8 May 2025. 

4. When you must check back 

The Environment Agency will review this RPS by 22 September 2028.  

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. 

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 contacting enquiries@environment-agency.gov.uk with RPS 357 in the subject 

6. Contact the Environment Agency 

If you have any questions about this RPS, email enquiries@environment-agency.gov.uk with RPS 357 in the subject.