Internal versus External Waste Treatment

The recycling and/or treatment of industrial, commercial and household waste should take place in suitable buildings to secure higher environmental standards for the management of waste and to minimise the impact on adjoining land-uses. Where proposals do not include the provision or use of a building, then the Department will expect the applicant to demonstrate how the proposed development meets the exception outlined above. Some operations can reasonably only be conducted outside, for example windrow composting. The policy also allows for circumstances when it is reasonable for parts of the operation to be carried out in the open. For example, to allow the open-air storage of wastes and recycled products, as long as they are controlled so that they would not become windblown or produce odours or leachate.