FAQ’s

ADR comes from the French for the “European Agreement concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road” which is a treaty dating back to 1957 from the United Nations regarding the governance of international transport of Dangerous Goods.

ADR sets out the requirements for the classification, packaging, labelling and certification of dangerous goods. It also includes specific vehicle and tank requirements and other operational requirements.

One of our mobile chemists can come out to your premises, sample the material and we’ll analyse the material and quote you based on the results.

Waste classification is the analysis used to classify if the material is either hazardous or non-hazardous waste, following the procedure in the Environment Agency Document WM3.

WAC testing is required after waste classification and tells you what type of landfill can be used to dispose of the material, once it has already been classified as hazardous or non-hazardous waste.

If a spill has contaminated the ground, the soil will need to be cleaned up along with any floating oil and any affected water.  If the spill is recent, small and limited to shallow soil, then this is a minor spill.  Check the soil, working out from the source of spill to find out where the oil now is and if it’s limited to a few buckets worth of soil, dig up the oily and stained soils. Remove any free oil and dispose of soil through a specialist waste contractor.

A larger spill of oil has the potential to contaminate a lot more soil and groundwater. In this case, both soil and groundwater need to be assessed and possibly cleaned up by a specialist waste contractor.

Acumen Waste’s industrial site services division are experienced in a variety of soil and groundwater clean ups and can attend site do discuss requirements.

No there are other recycling and treatment options for leadshot blast waste, but are dependent on comprehensive testing.

Acumen can provide both on site chemists and full testing services.

Acumen have a dedicated supply chain management team who are responsible for any works that are not conducted on their own wheels. These are generally trade waste services and general waste skips. Should a waste partner be utilised for any waste service then Acumen will provide a comprehensive environmental sustainability pack which will detail the carrier and disposal licence for that individual waste activity.

Storage of aerosols must take place in secure well ventilated containers which are not subject to extreme temperatures or direct sunlight.

Aerosols are often contain gases that are denser than air, such as propane and butane, which can accumulate in low lying areas and form a potentially explosive atmosphere.  Vented drums enable these to escape, so by reducing the potential of an explosive atmosphere being created in the drum.

FORS (Fleet Operator Recognition Scheme) encompasses all aspects of safety, fuel efficiency, vehicle emissions and improved operations and helps fleet operators to measure and monitor performance and alter their operations in order to demonstrate best practice.

Commercial waste is defined as any waste product that is created from commercial activity. Generally this is light compactable or recyclable wastes that are disposed of via REL/FEL, wheelie bins or bagged collections.

Acumen operate a 24hr emergency response line and have dedicated teams who are able to react quickly to immediate and scheduled requirements including fly tipped waste collections.

If you have a spill and a spill kit isn’t readily available, you may be able to contain it using materials already on your site like for instance dry sand/sand bags and earth may soak up a spill of oil or chemicals. Sand bags can be used to channel substances to a collection point, to block off drains, contain spills or to dam ditches. Once contaminated, sand and sand bags must be properly disposed of in accordance with the Duty of Care and not washed into drainage systems.

Other items could be used such as:

• tarpaulin and wooden planks to create a temporary boom in a river;
• fire hoses used as a boom;
• straw bales used as a boom and absorbent;
• a car foot well mat or a sheet of polythene, weighed down with sand or earth as a drain seal.

No, they can’t.  Spills should be contained where possible at the source. If the primary container or secondary containment have been breached or failed for any reason, try to contain the spill where it’s happening. This will reduce the quantity of material released, meaning there’s less spilt material that can cause pollution.

If you can’t stop the spill where it’s happening, aim to stop it as close to the source as possible. Where the spill has escaped from the primary and secondary containers you should try to stop it spreading.  Use absorbents such as spillsorb, booms and spill mats to soak up the spill and to stop any further spread. All used absorbents must be disposed of according to Duty of Care and, if soaked in oil or chemicals, will be classed as hazardous waste.

In some very small cases, it may be possible to hose spilt material into a drainage system if it’s a sealed drainage system, allowing the incident to be dealt with more quickly and safely. However, you must make sure the spilt material won’t cause any unwanted reactions such as creating an explosive atmosphere within your drainage system.

The next step up from a traditional skip, Roll On, Roll Off skips (also known as RoRo skips) are ideal for construction and industrial organisations who need to dispose of a high volume of waste with capacities ranging from 20 yards up to 40 yards.

The capacity of a skip is measured in cubic yards. As a rule of thumb, one cubic yard will contain up to one metric tonne (1,000 kilograms) of waste.  Therefore, a skip with a capacity of eight cubic yards will carry a maximum weight of eight tonnes.

Some hazardous material is suitable to be collected in skips, examples being contaminated soil, asbestos and shotblast.  You must always check with the skip provider if the material you want to place in the skip is appropriate first.

No, skips are available with drain holes, capped drains, or fully sealed, dependant on the material which is to be placed in the skip. Acumen will work with procurement and site management teams to advise what container is most suitable.

All packages manufactured under the UN certification scheme for the carriage of dangerous goods are marked with a code that indicates the physical nature of the product for which they are suitable, materials used to construct the package, maximum gross mass or specific gravity, year, and location of manufacture and whether the packages are suitable for dangerous goods of packing group I, II or III. The code always starts with the letters “UN” in a circle.

Packages that do not display the UN certification mark must not be used for dangerous goods.

No, although there is a wide variety of hazardous and non-hazardous liquid wastes that can be which include:

• Flammable solvent-based paints, resins and adhesives
• Rinse waters, spent solutions and effluent sludges from metal plating and treatment processes
• Acid and caustics
• Oil and water interceptor waste from vehicle and plant wash-down interceptors
• Contaminated water
• Leachate from landfills
• Spray booth liquids and sludges
• Pharmaceutical and pesticide contaminated liquids
• Garage and petrol station forecourt interceptors
• Aqueous washings
• Food wastes from bakeries, food processing facilities and food factories, including cooking oils and washings
• Gully waste from roads