On 27th November, Natural Resources Wales (NRW) issued the Welsh End of Waste positions for compost and anaerobic digestate (linked below). These documents replace the Quality Protocols for compost and digestate in Wales.
The Welsh documents are adapted from the EA’s Resource Frameworks in England. While the main purpose (to set the end of waste criteria) and many key aspects are the same (e.g., amended waste codes, plastic limits, and additional markets), the Frameworks have been tailored due to differences in Welsh and English Legislation.
The key differences in the NRW documents are:
- Clarification of the legislative requirements for use of compost and digestates in Wales
- Inclusion of NRW’s position on treated manures and slurries (within the digestate guidance only)
- Different structure, with an Annex for waste codes (similar to SEPA)
- Terminology used is slightly different in places
Operators producing end-of-waste compost or digestate in Wales and/or supplying these products to Welsh markets must be compliant with the NRW Guidance.
NRW has also issued Regulatory Statement 122 (RS122), which gives composters and AD operators more time to comply with the tighter plastics limits set out in the new Welsh EoW guidance, provided they comply with certain conditions. RS122 is valid until December 2026 by which time it will be reviewed.
If you expect you’ll need time to comply with the lower plastics limits, you may want to consider registering for this RPS. To do so, you’ll need to email [email protected] by 20th April 2026 and comply with conditions set out in this RPS.
If members have any questions, please email [email protected].