NEWS RELEASE
Date: 21 November 2007
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Latest Local Authority waste statistics published
Defra has today published municipal waste statistics for all English local authorities in 2006/07. These show how individual local authorities are contributing to national goals to reduce waste, recycle more and landfill less:
- 83 per cent of local authorities collected less household rubbish (residual waste) than in 2005/06;
- 94 per cent of authorities recycled and composted more of their household waste than in 2005/06; and
- 88 per cent of disposal authorities landfilled less of their municipal waste than in 2005/06.
Local authorities have collectively boosted national recycling and composting rates to 31 per cent and disposed of 1 million tonnes less waste in landfill in 2006/07, compared to 2005/06.
Climate Change and Waste Minister, Joan Ruddock, said:
“These statistics show that many householders and local authorities have got the “reduce, reuse and recycle” message and are doing a great job. They are helping in our battle against dangerous climate change. The best local authorities have achieved close to double the average. But some authorities are not doing anywhere near enough. Under-performing councils must do more to help their residents reduce their rubbish and recycle more from their homes.”
Other findings from the statistics include:
- Less rubbish – the lowest amount of residual household waste collected in 2006/07 was 180 kilograms per person. The highest was 449kg per person;
- More recycling - the highest percentage household recycling and composting in 2006/07 was 55.5 per cent. The lowest rate was 11.8 per cent;
- Less landfill - the lowest percentage of municipal waste landfilled in 2006/07 was 7 per cent. The highest was 93 per cent.
Notes to editors
1. This information complements national municipal waste statistics: www.defra.gov.uk/environment/statistics/wastats/bulletin07.htm
2. The full list of local authority and disposal authority statistics are at: www.defra.gov.uk/environment/statistics/wastats/bulletin07.htm
There are also lists of 10 ‘top tens’ and 8 ‘top three’ that show how various authorities are achieving their reduction and recycling goals. These cover:
- 10 lowest residual household waste per head;
- 10 lowest % of municipal solid waste (MSW) to landfill;
- 10 highest recycling and composting rate;
- 10 highest dry recyclers;
- 10 highest green recyclers;
- Largest decrease in total household waste per head;
- Most improved in household residual waste arisings;
- Most improved in reduction of MSW to landfill; and
- Most improved recycling/composting rate.
3. Municipal waste is that which comes under the control of the Local Authority and includes household waste and other wastes collected by a waste collection authority or its agents, such as municipal parks and gardens waste, beach cleansing waste, commercial or industrial waste, and waste resulting from the clearance of fly-tipped materials.
4. Rubbish refers to household waste that is not re-used, recycled or composted. It is sometimes referred to as black bag or residual waste.
5. Local authorities have no statutory waste targets in 2006/07. The next set of targets applies in 2007/08. Defra will closely monitor performance of local authorities against these targets.
6. From April 2008 a new local authority performance framework will apply. Local authorities will have three new waste indicators:
- household waste not re-used, recycled or composted per head (kilograms per person, residual waste indicator)
- percentage of household waste reused, recycled and composted
- percentage of municipal waste landfilled (measures municipal waste not recovered in some way)
7. This table is the first release of individual local authority data from WasteDataFlow for 2006/7. The information is based on local authority returns in England.
8. For 2006/7 there was a 100% response rate on WasteDataFlow. The data entered into WasteDataFlow are also used by the Environment Agency to monitor biodegradable municipal waste sent to landfill by local authorities under the Landfill Allowances Trading Scheme.
9. Household waste includes household collection rounds (‘bin’ waste), other household collections such as bulky waste collections, waste from services such as litter collections, waste from civic amenity sites and wastes separately collected for recycling or composting through bring/drop off schemes, kerbside schemes and at civic amenity sites. The amount of waste sent for reuse, recycling and composting is that which is accepted by the reprocessor. As such it excludes any recycling rejects that occur during collection, sorting or further treatment. Waste diverted for recycling from the residual stream by further processing is included in the recycling tonnages.
10. Waste Strategy 2007 for England set out new targets for the management of municipal and household waste. A greater focus on waste prevention was recognised through a new target to reduce the amount of household waste not re-used, recycled or composted from over 22.2 million tonnes in 2000 by 29% to 15.8 million tonnes in 2010 with an aspiration to reduce it to 12.2 million tonnes in 2020 – a reduction of 45%. This is equivalent to a fall of 50% per person (from 450 kg per person in 2000 to 225 kg in 2020). There are also new targets on:
- recycling and composting of household waste – at least 40% by 2010, 45% by 2015 and 50% by 2020; and
- recovery of municipal waste – 53% by 2010, 67% by 2015 and 75% by 2020.
Further information can be found on the Defra website. www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/strategy/index.htm
11. On 15 November Government announced proposals to provide important new powers to tackle waste and climate change. These new powers, set out in the Climate Change Bill, will enable up to 5 local authorities to pilot waste incentive schemes. The purpose of the schemes is to encourage householders to reduce and recycle their waste, in particular rewarding those who recycle the most and throw away the least. Authorities will be free to integrate rebates and charges, if there are any, with the council tax system. This helps provide greater transparency. The Government has set out a national framework of checks and balances for pilot schemes which include:
- providing a good kerbside recycling service;
- taking account of potentially disadvantaged groups; and
- having in place a fly-tipping prevention strategy.
Further information can be found on the Defra website: www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/strategy/incentives/index.htm
12. Government initiatives funded through the Waste Implementation Programme to support local authorities to implement more sustainable waste management practices include:
- The new Waste Infrastructure Delivery Programme aimed to help encourage the delivery of £10bn worth of new infrastructure;
- simplified criteria for Private Finance Initiative and preference given to sustainable technologies. 23 local authority projects have already benefited from £1,094m of PFI funding approval since 1997;
- £3.5 million of consultancy support has benefited 300 authorities;
- The £30 million New Technologies Demonstration programme which is showing local authorities and the waste sector some cutting edge technologies in action;
- WRAP ( the Waste & Resources Action Programme) which helps local authorities to improve their recycling rates and helps industry to use the materials recovered through recycling to make new products;
- WRAP is also responsible for Recycle Now, the major advertising campaign to encourage recycling and home composting. This is supported by the Government through Defra's Waste Implementation Programme (WIP). Set up in 2001 to improve the UK's recycling performance and resource efficiency, WRAP is a not for profit organisation backed by Government funding from Defra and the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
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Page published: 22 November 2007