MGN 419 (Disposal of out of date pyrotechnics (marine flares)) advises as follows: (1) It is an offence to fire distress-signal pyrotechnics on land, in harbour or at sea for either testing purposes, practice or as fireworks (whether the pyrotechnics are out of date or not).
(2) It is an offence to dump pyrotechnics at sea. (3) Out of date pyrotechnics should be landed ashore as soon as possible after the date of expiry for safe disposal. (4) Do not place out of date pyrotechnics in the general rubbish, or abandon them at Coastguard, RNLI or Police stations. MGN 419 contains a link to an MCA website page headed Advice for the disposal of time-expired pyrotechnics (TEPs) from 1 April 2010 which advises as follows: “If you have out of date or damaged flares you should first contact the supplier from whom you originally bought them to see if they offer a take back scheme. Some Local Authorities also operate disposal facilities. “
