What happens if waste is treated without a permit under the Wastes Control Act?

If waste is treated without a permit under the Wastes Control Act, it may be subject to criminal punishment, and depending on the method of treatment, a heavier punishment may apply.

In your case, it appears that the issue is that you treated waste generated at your business site without a separate permit or entrusted it to an outside party, and this may fall under the case of treating business-site waste without a lawful procedure.

In such a case, under Article 63 of the Wastes Control Act, one may be subject to imprisonment for up to 7 years or a fine of up to 70 million won, and depending on the matter, imprisonment and a fine may be imposed concurrently.

In addition, separately from criminal punishment, administrative dispositions such as suspension of business or revocation of the permit may be imposed together.

Therefore, in such a situation, it is necessary to organize your response according to the following criteria.

① Clarifying the type of violation

Because the applicable provision and the level of punishment may differ depending on whether it is unauthorized dumping or unlicensed treatment, you must first distinguish which type the current conduct falls under.

② Organizing the circumstances of treatment and the scope of responsibility

You must organize the actual scope of responsibility based on the process from waste generation to treatment, whether there was a contract with an outside company, and the internal decision-making structure.

③ Securing related materials

You must secure objective materials such as the waste transfer form, transport records, and the contract so that you can explain how the actual treatment process was carried out.

④ Responding to administrative dispositions and criminal proceedings in parallel

Because a violation of the Wastes Control Act often involves administrative dispositions proceeding simultaneously with criminal proceedings, it is necessary to prepare responses suited to each procedure together.

Taken together, it is important to accurately organize the type of violation and the scope of responsibility, systematically prepare the related materials, and respond in a more organized manner to the criminal and administrative procedures that follow.