Hazardous waste management in the European Community. Implications of ‘1992’

Abstract

Toxic wastes are increasingly subjected to transfrontier movements, both between Member States and between Member States and third countries. It has become a point of public concern whether the concept of free movement of goods and services in the EC internal market will be applied to hazardous waste exports as well. These debates add to already existing pressures on the Commission to develop a uniform regulatory framework across Europe. In this paper attention is paid to the present state of hazardous waste management in Europe, existing Community legislation and the implications of ‘1992’. The harmonization of national definitions and standards has proven extremely difficult: the question whether an internal market for hazardous waste will become reality has still not been decided on.