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As many Canadian waste generators have realized, ownership (and potential liability) for waste can linger after the waste has left the plant. Some waste facility managers have responded by utilizing risk assessments.
A tremendous amount of effort is required to assemble the information necessary to complete a full liability risk assessment. In 1996, the Western Canadian Auditing Roundtable (WCAR) -- a committee comprised of prominent western companies with an interest in health, safety and environmental auditing -- set out to develop a "best practices protocol" that would universally address the risk assessment concerns of any waste generator.
At a preliminary meeting with several key waste companies, waste facility operators implored generators to adopt a single standard for the waste facility audit. Each of the WCAR members brought their waste facility audit protocols, which ranged in size from five to 65 pages.
With help from environmental consultants...