BUSINESSES in the region have been warned that they must adopt systems for treating non-hazardous waste by the end of the month.

A law instigated by the European Union, which comes into force on October 30, will dictate that all such waste has to be treated before going to landfill.

Firms already have to separate and treat hazardous waste, but the new regulations will expand the rules to cover everything from bricks, wood and soil to food waste, paper and plastic.

It will also be the responsibility of landfill operators in England and Wales to ensure that non-hazardous waste has been treated before accepting it for disposal.

Government-backed environmental agency Envirowise estimates that the regulations will affect many millions of tonnes of waste in the region.

Guy Bashford, Envirowise regional manager for the North-East, said: "The main objective is to encourage companies to consider options for minimisation, segregation, recycling and re-use, before automatically sending something to landfill.

"Treatment can be as simple as separating different components at source, some of which could then be recycled."

Other options include using waste brick for aggregate, disposal through incineration and the use of biological treatments to break down waste.

Mr Bashford said: "We are hoping these new rules will encourage people not just to focus on the treatment stage, but to consider whether or not their waste needs to be generated at all.

"The more North-East businesses can do to reduce the use of raw materials at the outset, the more resource-efficient and cost-efficient their operations will be."

For more information, call Envirowise on 0800-585794 or visit www.envirowise.gov.uk/waste