An intermediate treatment activity is a Treatment activity with outputs of By-product/Wastes that are all Materials for treatment.
This classification represents a specific type of waste treatment process that sits within the broader waste management chain. Treatment activities are transforming activities characterised by having a reference product with a negative sign, meaning they provide a service by accepting and processing materials rather than producing conventional products.
What distinguishes an intermediate treatment activity from other treatment activities is the nature of its outputs. Whilst the activity processes incoming waste materials, it does not result in final disposal or in products that can displace determining products from other activities. Instead, all outputs from an intermediate treatment activity remain as materials for treatment, requiring further processing or handling before reaching their final destination in the product system.
Examples of intermediate treatment activities include initial sorting operations, mechanical shredding, partial chemical treatment, or pre-processing steps that prepare waste materials for subsequent treatment stages. These activities transform the physical or chemical properties of waste materials without completing the treatment chain. The outputs remain in the waste management system, moving towards either recycling activities that can produce displacement-capable by-products or final disposal activities that represent the end of the material's life cycle.
This contrasts with recycling activities, which produce by-products capable of displacing determining products, and final disposal activities, which have no product outputs other than the disposal service itself. The intermediate treatment activity thus represents a middle ground in the waste hierarchy, where materials undergo transformation but have not yet reached either recovery or final disposal.
