Proposals to reduce landfill waste announced

Summary

Each year about 100 million tonnes of waste are generated by UK households, commerce, and industry; it has been estimated that if every country consumed natural resources at this rate, we would need three planets to live on.

Most of this waste ends up in landfill where the biodegradable part generates potent greenhouse gases, while valuable energy is used in extracting and processing new raw materials.

The Report 'Waste Strategy for England 2007' (Cm. 7086) sets out the Government's strategy for waste management in England, building on the progress made since the 'Waste Strategy 2000' (Cm. 4693-I), published May 2000.

The key objectives of this strategy are:

To separate waste from economic growth and put more emphasis on waste prevention and re-use
To meet and exceed the Landfill Directive diversion targets for biodegradable municipal waste by 2020
To increase diversion of waste from landfill and secure better integration of waste treatment
To secure the investment in infrastructure needed to divert waste from landfill and for the management of hazardous waste
To obtain maximum environmental benefit from that investment, through increased recycling and recovery of energy from residual waste.

This policy document also calls for improved national, regional and local governance, with a clearer performance and institutional framework to deliver better co-ordinated action and services on the ground. This includes the establishment of a Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs-led Waste Strategy Board to provide leadership within and across government.

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Law-Making Explained

This is a Command Paper (Cm. 7086): it is a White Paper from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Find out more about White Papers.

How does it affect me?

If you are a member of a household, or work in commerce or industry in the UK, this affects you.

The Government proposes a new strategy to deal with waste prevention, use of landfill, recycling and management of hazardous waste, which could include "pay-as-you-throw" domestic waste management schemes and reductions in biodegradable municipal waste sent to landfill sites.