ENGLAND MEETS AND BEATS ITS RECYCLING & COMPOSTING TARGE

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ENGLAND MEETS AND BEATS ITS RECYCLING & COMPOSTING TARGE

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Behemoth

Joined: 01 Dec 2004
Posts: 19023
Location: Leeds

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 05 10:11 am Post subject: ENGLAND MEETS AND BEATS ITS RECYCLING & COMPOSTING TARGE

Defra Press release

ENGLAND MEETS AND BEATS ITS RECYCLING & COMPOSTING TARGET

Environment Secretary Margaret Beckett today confirmed that England has successfully met and exceeded its target to recycle and compost 17 per cent of household waste during 2003/4.

Today's Municipal Waste Management Statistics show that householders in England are now recycling and composting nearly 18% (17.7%) of their household waste, up 3.2% from 14.5% in 2002/03 and from 7.5% in 1996/97, and beating the national target by almost 1%.

Talking to the Trade Association Forum, Mrs Beckett confirmed that it is the first time that such a target has ever been met.

"England is making excellent progress on recycling, but we must not be complacent - we must now work towards our more ambitious national target of recycling and composting a quarter of household waste by 2005/06.

"We are making it easier for people to recycle, for example by working with supermarkets on front-of-store recycling - and we are committed to extend kerbside collection of at least two types of recyclable materials to all households in England by 2010. We are also funding pilots into incentive schemes for household recycling."

Other key trends highlighted by today's report include:

* For the first time, a 1.0% reduction in the total amount of municipal waste (from 29.4 million tonnes in 2002/03 to 29.1 million tonnes in 2003/04).

* Another first in recent years, a 2% reduction in the amount of household waste collected per person per year (down from 520kg in 2002/03 to 510kg in 2003/04).

* For the second year in a row a further reduction in the amount and proportion of waste being sent to landfill has been recorded (a reduction from 22.1 million tonnes in 2002/03 and 20.9 million tonnes in 2003/04).

* Kerbside collection schemes are growing in popularity, waste collected for recycling in this way increased by 50% in 2003/04. Almost all authorities now collect some waste for recycling through kerbside schemes.

* 'Bring' sites, such as bottle banks, and civic amenity sites continue to be a popular way to recycle waste - 58% of all waste that was recycled was collected via these sites.

As well as presenting the national picture, today's figures show that there are significant variations in household recycling rates between different regions. The highest recycling regions were the East (23.2%) and the South East (22.7%). Despite recording the lowest rate at 11.9%, recycling of household waste in the North East is growing faster than anywhere else in England with Householders in the region recycling 80% more waste during 2003/04 than they did in 2002/03.

Defra and the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) will be continuing to work with local authorities and retailers to pilot and roll out new ways - from new technology at recycling 'bring' banks to financial incentives such as discount vouchers - to get people recycling more.

In addition, national campaigns and local action-focused activity will continue throughout the year.

The 'Recycle Now' campaign is already encouraging and motivating consumers to recycle more stuff more often. The campaign, which includes a high profile TV and national press advertising campaign, was launched in September and will continue through to March 2006.

This summer, the BIG recycle campaign will begin on 27 June marking a week of fun and informative activities at a national, regional and local level. Last year, almost 250 authorities across the country took part by running their own campaigns to highlight the 'what', 'where' and 'how' to recycle locally.

Mrs Beckett concluded: "There is a growing list of materials you can recycle either through kerbside collection schemes or recycling collection points from junk mail to plastic milk containers to drink cans.

"However, recycling isn't just confined to what you can drop off in your recycling bins: many community based organisations are raising vital funds by recycling more unusual goods like old mobile phones, books, computers and spectacles. So much of the waste we generate could be reused, recycled and transformed from a problem into an asset"

For more information on recycling during 2003/04 please see https://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/statistics/wastats/index.htm

A dedicated website https://www.recyclenow.com/ provides in-depth information on what can be recycled and how, with a search tool that to find out what recycling facilities exist in your area.

Notes to Editors

The Municipal Waste Management Survey is published annually. It features waste and recycling statistics broken down by region and local authority as well as commenting on trends. The Survey published today shows first figures for 2003-2004. A more detailed report on the survey is planned for May 2005.

All local authorities with waste management responsibilities have been set individual Statutory Performance Standards for recycling and composting in 2005/06.

In recognition of differing local circumstances, the level of each authority's target was based on the proportion of household waste they recycled and composted in 1998/99. In broad terms, we have required authorities to double their recycling and composting rate by 2003/04, and triple it by 2005/06.

When combined, the local targets add up to the national target of 17% recycling and composting by 2003/04, and 25% by 2005/06.

The Household Waste Recycling Act 2003 provides that where English waste collection authorities have a general duty to collect waste they shall ensure, except in some circumstances, that by 31 December 2010 they collect at least two types of recyclable waste together or individually separated from the rest of the household waste. This is subject to two exemptions: where the cost of doing so was unreasonably high or where comparable alternative arrangements are available. The Secretary of State may also make a direction that the duty shall not apply to a waste collection authority until a later date, which must be before 31 December 2015. The exceptions are narrowly drawn and it is intended that they should be applied restrictively.

Public enquiries 08459 335577;
Press notices are available on our website
https://www.defra.gov.uk
Defra's aim is sustainable development

Nobel House
17 Smith Square
London SW1P 3JR

Website https://www.defra.gov.uk

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Bugs

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 10744

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 05 10:15 am Post subject:
I'm fighting a temptation to walk down our street and commit violent acts on the morons who don't use the kerbside recycling. I mean, it's not perfect, but it's a starting point. Arrrrrrrrgh.

moggins

Joined: 24 Feb 2005
Posts: 942
Location: Gloucester

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 05 10:33 am Post subject:
We have kerbside recycling but the trouble was that when they brought the bins round they didn't think to tell us what could go in them, so many people are confused. Even I am stuck with just my milk containers, newspapers and the cat food tins going in

culpepper

Joined: 16 Dec 2004
Posts: 638
Location: Kent

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 05 11:13 am Post subject:

I wish maidstone would get their act together.We have glass one week and 'garden waste' the other and thats it. There are bins outside supermarkets but not everyone can get to them or remembers to take the stuff when they are going to the supermarket.
Even when I have rung up and asked, the answers are vague, as whoever answers the phone has no more idea where specific recycling bins are, than I have.
Its good to see britain is reaching its targets but it sounds like most of the congratulations goes to the northerners.

cab

Joined: 01 Nov 2004
Posts: 32429

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 05 11:14 am Post subject:
The trouble with targets is you either meet them, so you were probably under-ambitious with the target, or you miss them, so you're a failure. 17% is under ambitious. I'd rather we'd attained more but failed to reach a REALLY ambitious target. And I'd love to see better guidelines for business waste.

tahir

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 45669
Location: Essex

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 05 11:17 am Post subject:

Cab wrote:

And I'd love to see better guidelines for business waste.

Absolutely, so much easier to regulate and process, yet not a priority

jema
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 28233
Location: escaped from Swindon

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 05 12:01 pm Post subject:
Some of the percentage figure talked about are so small, they could be easily explained away by the figures being fiddled. They must be such an amalgum of stats, that the scope for dubious reporting is massive.

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 05 12:18 pm Post subject:
Mmmm, as people have said it just seems to be due to the low targets. I cannot see why the composting target isn't closer to 100%. No mention of reducing the packaging or waste in the first place. I also wonder if the numbers have been massaged in an election year as some of the green parties may do quite well.

mochyn

Joined: 21 Dec 2004
Posts: 24585
Location: mid-Wales

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 05 6:30 pm Post subject:
There is a nail hit squarely on the head, Treac. If packaging was reduced in the first place life would be much easier. I wish I shopped in supermarkets so I could take all their packaging back to them!

jema
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 28233
Location: escaped from Swindon

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 05 6:38 pm Post subject:

mochyn wrote:

There is a nail hit squarely on the head, Treac. If packaging was reduced in the first place life would be much easier. I wish I shopped in supermarkets so I could take all their packaging back to them!

I have heard that the reason why some of the more pssemistic landfill predictions have not come to pass, is that the manufactuers are actually reducing packaging. e.g. a thinner coke bottle costs less to produce and will end up crushing more easily, taking less land fill. But this is really packaging being reduced in the name of profit, which is the sort of progress that can just as easily reverse.

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