Quest provide effective liquid waste management solutions and exceptional level of customer service to both commercial and domestic clients.
Quest are market leaders in providing effective and sustainable liquid waste management services.
In order to achieve our goals we will endeavour to provide the highest levels of quality in our service and provide value for our customers.
EFFLUENT WASTE MANAGEMENT
In the United Kingdom trade effluent is defined as any liquid waste, other than domestic sewage or rainwater run-off which comes from a business.
The Water Industry Act 1991 defines trade effluent as “any liquid, either with or without particles of matter in suspension in the liquid, which is wholly or partly produced in the course of any trade or industry carried on at a trade premises.”
In most cases, effluent is described as water which is contaminated with chemicals, metals, detergents, fats, grease or food waste.
There are also strict rules on businesses preventing the use of macerator machines which grind up food waste before it is discharged into the public sewer system.
If your organisation produces trade effluent or liquid waste there are a number of ways of dealing with it.
The best, and most cost effective option is to connect to a public sewer, although before you do this you’ll need specific consent from the water company which provides your sewerage services to do this.
If this isn’t possible the next best option is to operate your own private sewer running through your business premises, which connects up to the public sewer system as near to your land as possible.
OIL & CONTAMINANTS WASTE MANAGEMENT
Oil and water mixtures are a very common waste stream, caused when wastewater has become contaminated with oil.
These mixtures can also contain other contaminants such as sewage. All waste oils such as fuel oil, diesel, biodiesel, or lubricating oils, etc are legally classified as a hazardous waste, under absolute hazardous entries in the List of wastes.
The only two exceptions to this rule are edible oil and in certain circumstances some biodiesel. Waste oil and water mixtures on your site need to be transported away safely and legally to an authorised hazardous waste facility to recover the oil.
We offer a full range of vehicles and cover a full range of industries which include Chemical, Pharmaceutical, and waste from Food industries.
Our technical team can cover your needs with a bespoke and tailored package.
HAZARDOUS & ACID (ADR) WASTE MANAGEMENT
Quest Waste Management is a registered carrier of hazardous waste. Our staff are trained and can give advice and assessment, legal documentation and safe disposal advice for all Hazardous and ADR works.
There are a number of benefits to the ADR transport options we provide and we base our ethos on looking at disposal options that are environmentally friendly, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and providing a “green image “ to your company
We can also offer bulk waste removal to deal with larger jobs and tailor works around individual needs to save money and time.
We can offer you expert advice on the segregation and containment of all kinds of hazardous waste. The classification system for hazardous waste is constantly being updated. If you are unsure if the waste you have for disposal is determined as hazardous, in the first instance please call us for guidance.
ANIMAL BY-PRODUCTS
Quest Waste are licensed under the AB117 to carry Category 2 & 3 waste to appropriate and licensed disposal sites.
Animal by-products are divided into three categories according to their potential risk to human and animal health. There are different rules for disposing of waste in each category.
All three categories of animal by-products must be kept separate at all times. If material from one category is mixed with material from another category, the whole mixture must be treated as being in the higher risk category.
Category 1 animal by-products – for very high risk material and includes:
- animals and materials suspected or confirmed to be infected by transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs), such as scrapie in sheep, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in cattle
- animals that have been experimented on
- zoo and pet animal carcasses
- wild animals suspected of having an infectious disease
- catering waste from international transport, i.e. aircraft and ships
- specified risk material (SRM), i.e. tissues from cattle, sheep or goats that might be infected with TSEs, or carcasses that have not had SRM removed
- animal tissue collected when treating waste water from category 1 processing plants.
Category 1 material must be disposed of by:
- direct incineration
- rendering – followed by incineration or landfill.
International catering waste may be disposed of at a landfill site authorised by the Divisional Veterinary Office in Northern Ireland or Animal Health in Scotland.
Category 2 animal by-products – for high risk material and includes:
- animals that are slaughtered to prevent the spread of disease
- manure and digestive tract content
- animals and parts of animals which die by means other than slaughtering, e.g. fallen stock
- animal tissue collected when treating waste water from category 2 processing plants.
Category 2 material must be disposed of by:
- direct incineration
- rendering or other authorised treatment process – followed by incineration, landfill, composting or biogas treatment.
Some category 2 material – such as manure – may be recycled without pre-treatment, e.g. for biogas, composting, oleo-chemical products, or used as a fertiliser if other requirements are met. Unprocessed category 2 material cannot go to landfill.
Category 3 animal by-products – for low risk material and includes:
- meat and fish from food manufacturers and retailers
- former foodstuffs of animal origin, or containing products of animal origin – this includes food that is waste due to manufacturing or packaging defects
- catering waste, other than catering waste from international transport
- eggs and other by-products that do not show signs of infectious disease
- milk
- fish and other sea animals
- shells
- hooves, horns and feathers.
Category 3 material must be disposed of by:
- incineration
- rendering – followed by incineration or landfill
- anaerobic digestion
- alkaline hydrolysis plant
- composting or biogas plant.
In some cases, category 3 material can be used in an approved pet food manufacturing plant or technical plant.
Category 3 material cannot be taken to landfill, except for catering waste.
GREASE TRAPS are a form of wastewater pre-treatment used by food service establishments to separate out fats, oils and greases from wastewater from dishwashers, sinks, floor drains and dumpster pads. Proper operation and maintenance of grease traps are an important means of preventing sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs), which can be caused by grease accumulation in sanitary sewers (much like cholesterol lines that narrow the body’s arteries). Grease traps are designed to slow the incoming wastewater so the grease congeals and floats to the top and solids settle to the bottom of the trap. If these accumulations of grease and solids are not routinely pumped out of the trap, the contaminants overflow the trap and contribute to SSOs.
It is recommend that your grease trap is cleaned when it is 25% full of solids, so if you are operating a larger commercial kitchen frequent grease trap cleaning may be required. For many of our clients we carry out grease trap cleaning every three months. In the long run regular maintenance reduces down time and increased costs, saving money.
All our waste is disposed of at licensed and regulated sites to a safe and legal standard
