Defra
has responded to concerns expressed by local authority waste heads about more
substantial waste
collections by councils and flattening recycling rates, by expressing
confidence that it will meet 2020 landfill reduction targets, reports one of
the leading waste disposal
companies, Collect and Recycle (http://www.collectandrecycle.com).
This
week (25 July) saw the Association of Directors of Environment, Economy,
Planning & Transport (ADEPT) write a letter to Defra minister Owen
Paterson, claiming government waste and recycling data to be "out of
date" and in urgent need of review.
According
to ADEPT, the country could be left "unable to avoid potentially crippling landfill fines in
the future", due to what it described as key waste policy and investment
decisions within government being informed by old household waste trends.
However, Defra has defended its analysis as accurate,
stating that UK landfill rates continued to decline as recycling rates in
England rose. The Landfill Directive dictates the UK's need to reduce
landfilled biodegradable municipal waste (BMW) to 50 per cent of the 1995 level
by 2013, and to 35 per cent of the 1995 level by the end of this decade.
ADEPT stated that when the first three quarters of
2012/13 were compared to the equivalent period in 2011/12, it was shown that
for 17 of the 33 waste disposal authorities for which reported data was found,
overall waste arisings of local authority collected waste had increased.
The letter added that recycling rates had reduced for 169
authorities submitting data for the whole of 2012/13, as well as that there had
been increased levels of total collected residual waste for 140 of 260 local
authorities to have submitted fourth quarter data.
ADEPT's analysis of current UK recycling and waste trends has
won backing from both the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) and waste
management industry representatives, the Environmental Services Association
(ESA). But Defra has argued that its data is not out of date.
A Defra spokeswoman commented: "We are confident that our landfill
target will be met and our recent analysis supports this.
“It takes into account the risks posed by changes in waste trends and
infrastructure and shows that we are continuing to reduce the amount of waste
sent to landfill and that household recycling rates in England are increasing.”
The ADEPT letter to Defra also raised concerns about the UK's waste
treatment capacity, while there was also criticism for the decision to withdraw
waste infrastructure credits worth millions of pounds from Merseyside, Bradford
and Yorkshire residual waste projects.
Here at Collect and Recycle (http://www.collectandrecycle.com),
we have an enduring passion in ensuring that UK recycling rates remain high and
rise to meet future landfill reduction targets. Companies that take advantage
of our cost-effective, safe and completely legally compliant waste services are able to make
their own contribution towards this goal.
Editor’s
Note: Collect and Recycle (http://www.collectandrecycle.com) are represented by the search engine advertising and digital marketing
specialists Jumping Spider Media. Email: info@jumpingspidermedia.co.uk
or call: +44
(0)20 3070 1959 / +34
952 783 637.
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