How to dispose of flares

Tuesday 21 March 2023

Need to get rid of those old flares? Expired marine pyrotechnics are classified as explosives under the UK's Explosives Regulations 2014, so you must dispose of them responsibly. Fortunately, the pleasure vessel industry has a new solution.

A man in the sea wearing a lifejacket holds up a red flare in the dark sky — Getting rid of your flares just got a lot easier, with a searchable online map of disposal sites

The RNLI and MCA can no longer accept out-of-date pyrotechnics from the general public due to a change in regulations but new arrangements, supported by British Marine and the RYA, mean that people can now search an online map to quickly find businesses across the UK that offer safe disposal. The number of participating businesses continues to grow, with 21 outlets providing the service at the time of writing.

Director of HM Coastguard Claire Hughes says: ‘This is a very important breakthrough and I’m very grateful to British Marine and the RYA, together with the wider marine and waste disposal industries, for working to find and provide a solution to this ongoing challenge. Providing disposal services for redundant marine pyrotechnics is really important as they can pose a risk to public safety and the marine and coastal environment.’

Find a flare disposal service