CHILE Law and Practice Contributed by: Pablo Méndez, Christian Rojas, Pablo Neupert and Vicente Huidobro, TM Abogados
• Waste generatorsmust deliver their waste to an authorised waste manager for treatment in accord- ance with applicable regulations, unless they are authorised to manage it themselves. Household and similar solid waste must be handed over to the municipality or an authorised manager (Article 5). • Waste managersmust handle waste in an environ- mentally sound manner, applying best available techniques and practices, holding the relevant authorisations, and declaring key data (type, quan- tity, cost, origin, treatment and destination) through the Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (RETC) (Article 6). • Importers and exporters of wasteare subject to the Basel Convention and national regulations. The import of hazardous waste for disposal is prohibited and import for recovery is only permit- ted where the Ministry of Environment authorises it and confirms that an approved facility will handle it (Article 8). • Management systems – whether individual or col- lective – must (Article 22): (a) maintain a financial guarantee (bond, insurance or equivalent) to ensure compliance with col- lection and recovery obligations; (b) enter into agreements with authorised waste managers and municipalities for collection and treatment; (c) submit periodic and final compliance reports through the RETC, certified by an external au- ditor if required, detailing the quantities placed on the market, costs, and achievement of col- lection and recovery target; and (d) provide any additional information requested by the Ministry of the Environment or the Superintendence of the Environment. The SMA is vested with enforcement powers, over- seeing compliance with recovery targets, reporting duties and management system performance, and may initiate sanctioning proceedings ex officio, fol- lowing a complaint or at the request of the Ministry of the Environment. The REP law also establishes strict civil liability for damages arising from the improper handling of haz- ardous waste (Article 43) and criminal penalties for unauthorised import, export or management of such
waste, including imprisonment for up to three years, increased where environmental harm occurs (Article 44). 16. Environmental Disclosure and Information 16.1 Disclosure and Reporting Requirements Timing and Manner of Disclosure In Chile, from a regulatory standpoint, disclosure is required primarily when a project is subject to envi- ronmental assessment under the Sistema de Eval- uación de Impacto Ambiental (SEIA). During the SEIA process, the project proponent must provide com- plete and truthful environmental information (Law No 19,300, Articles 8, 18, 19, 25 quater). Misrepresenta- tion or omission can trigger administrative sanctions and even the revocation of the Environmental Permit (RCA). Reporting Requirements As mentioned in 6.6 Environmental Audits , in the context of SEIA, environmental authorisations (RCA) typically establish monitoring and surveillance require- ments for various environmental components, as required by Law No 19,300 and the SEIA Regulations. These are defined on a case-by-case basis for each approved project. Key reporting duties include: • follow-up reports (ie, compliance data against the RCA conditions); • emissions declarations; and • incident notifications (ie, emergencies, spills). The SMA is the central body that receives and super- vises environmental information under the Environ- mental Monitoring System ( Sistema de Seguimiento Ambiental , or SSA). Besides these SEIA requirements, the SMA has also issued various general regulations in accordance with its Organic Law, ordering regulated entities to monitor certain specific components: • SMA regulations for monitoring emissions subject to Law 20,780 Green Tax (Exempt Resolution No 585/2023);
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