End of the waste status of excavated soil

End of the waste status of excavated soil

This article deals with the criteria for asserting the so-called end of waste, which must be met as a prerequisite for ALSAG-free recycling of construction waste. Finally, there is an outlook on a new regulation for soil excavation, which should bring relief in this area. Exact knowledge of these regulations is crucial for successful business in earthworks and civil engineering, because potential ALSAG additional payments can not only be painful for construction companies, but can even threaten their existence, given the quantities of construction waste that are moved.

Waste in construction

According to the federal waste management plan, a total of 70 million tons of waste is generated in Austria every year. Of this, 41 million tons (59%) are excavated soil, 11 million tons (16%) are construction and demolition waste and 18 million tons (25%) are other waste. This means that 75% of the total waste generated in Austria comes from construction work. This enormous amount of construction waste must be treated and utilized by the construction industry in the best possible ecological and economical way in order to be able to meet the requirements of the circular economy.
In order to handle construction waste in a legally compliant manner, a whole range of legal requirements must be adhered to, which poses enormous challenges for everyone affected (especially builders, planners and construction companies). The most important legal requirements relevant to construction include the following legal matters:

• Abfallwirtschaftsgesetz 2002
• Recycling-Baustoffverordnung 2015
• Deponieverordnung 2008
• Altlastensanierungsgesetz 1989
• Bundesabfallwirtschaftsplan 2023
• Abfallverzeichnisverordnung 2020
• Abfallnachweisverordnung 2012
• Abfallbilanzverordnung 2008

An overview of these legal requirements can be found in the “Construction waste, recycling and disposal” guide from the Construction Office (available at
www.bau.or.at/baurestmassen).

The following categories of construction waste and the correct handling of them, such as options for recycling, documentation requirements and handover obligations are covered in the brochure:

• Bodenaushub
• Betonabbruch
• Asphaltaufbruch
• Bauschutt
• Holzabfälle
• Metallabfälle
• Kunststoffabfälle
• Baustellenabfälle
• Verpackungsabfälle
• POP-Abfälle
• Gefährliche Abfälle

When does waste exist?

The concept of waste is regulated in the Waste Management Act (AWG) as follows: Waste is movable property,

• deren sich der Besitzer entledigen will oder entledigt hat (Entledigungsabsicht oder subjektiver Abfallbegriff) oder
• deren Sammlung, Lagerung, Beförderung und Behandlung als Abfall erforderlich ist, um die öffentlichen Interessen nicht zu beeinträchtigen (objektiver Abfallbegriff).

An item therefore becomes waste if there is an intention to dispose of it and/or a public interest in collecting it and treating it as waste. In construction activities, almost all surplus materials, such as excavated soil, mineral construction residues, construction rubble or construction waste (leftovers, offcuts, chips, containers, etc.) are to be assessed as waste, which, according to the AWG, must either be properly recycled or disposed of.

ALSAG contributions

The Contaminated Site Remediation Act (ALSAG) provides for a contribution obligation for landfilling waste, filling uneven terrain or making terrain adjustments (e.g. with building rubble or non-quality-assured recycled material), exporting waste or storing it for an interim storage period of 3 years. This depends on the type of waste or landfill and is, for example, €9.20 per ton for excavated material or construction waste. However, the ALSAG also provides for the free recycling of excavated material and mineral construction waste, whereby certain requirements under the Recycling Building Materials Ordinance and the Federal Waste Management Plan must then be adhered to. The ALSAG flowchart 2025 clearly shows the various recycling methods and their requirements for exemption from ALSAG contributions (see graphic).
The more detailed regulations on ALSAG are summarized in the ALSAG information sheet from the Construction Office (available at www.bau.or.at/baurestmassen).

Exception of soil excavation

When excavating soil, the AWG provides for a special feature with regard to the waste status. According to § 3 Paragraph 1 Z 8, uncontaminated soils that were excavated in the course of construction work are not even considered waste if it is ensured that they are reinstalled in their natural state at the place where they were excavated (same construction site). However, this exception cannot be used if, for example, excavated soil is to be used on another construction site. In principle, this is a waste property subject to ALSAG.

Current: end of slope for soil excavation

As a supplement to the Recycling Building Materials Ordinance, which regulates, among other things, the end of waste of mineral construction waste, the Ministry of the Environment is currently working on a regulation on the early end of waste of excavated soil. This new regulation is intended to enable an early and low-threshold end to excavated soil and promote the utilization of excavated soil in the spirit of the circular economy.
In September 2024, the ministry presented an initial draft, which was generally welcomed by the construction and recycling industries. Such a regulation would make it possible for uncontaminated excavated soil to immediately lose its waste status if quality was verified and to achieve product status in the sense of easier dispatch. As with the Recycling Building Materials Ordinance, this should be linked to certain usage requirements and should only be possible if defined quality criteria are adhered to and a reporting obligation is met.
Based on this initial draft, the construction and recycling industry has submitted numerous suggestions for improvement, which have at least partially been incorporated into the current draft regulation.

Unbureaucratic implementation

The construction and recycling industry has prepared a position paper with practical suggestions for the current draft regulation, which should be taken into account in the final version of the upcoming regulation. These suggestions are summarized in excerpts below:

• Anwendungsbeschränkungen

If the necessary environmental quality requirements are achieved and the end of the waste is confirmed by an expert report or report by an expert, there should be as few restrictions as possible on legally compliant use. Record keeping requirements should be minimized once the end of waste has been reached.

• Meldepflichten

Once the legal end of excavated soil has been established, no further notification of the recipient of the material should be necessary.

• Sieblinie als Mindestmaß einer bautechnischen Eignung

When using non-cohesive soils, proof of a grading curve - depending on the planned use - is viewed as helpful because it provides meaningful information about the possible use. However, the grading curve does not have to be a mandatory criterion for reaching the end of the waste.

• Verwertungsgebot

Recycling measures usually result automatically from existing technical and economic conditions. A recycling requirement might therefore be justifiable if it makes technical and economic sense. In contrast, any form of “compulsory delivery” within the meaning of waste law must be rejected.

Summary

A low-threshold waste end when excavating soil can make a significant contribution to achieving the goals of the Austrian circular economy strategy. In the spirit of the circular economy, the planned end-of-waste regulation should be designed to be as unbureaucratic and lean as possible so that it is actually accepted in construction practice.

Further information: here