On Monday 1st May, Directive 2006/21/EC of the European Parliament and the Council dated 15th March 2006 on the management of waste from extractive industries became European law. What this means is that there now ensues a two year transition period, during which some complex provisions of the Directive have to be worked out ahead of the deadline for national transposition on 1st May 2008.

"The new Directive introduces a legal definition of "Extractive Waste": the definition is both complex and very wide-ranging."

"Virtually all operators of mines and quarries will be affected by the Directive, as will all on-shore oil and gas operators. "

http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/...