Comment

The 2020 challenge and beyond

The Environmental Services Association's Executive Director, Jacob Hayler, looks at the UK's current recycling rate, and what we can do to improve it.

The 2020 challenge and beyond

Defra’s latest figures show that household recycling rates in England have edged up again and now stand at almost 45 per cent . But the pace of improvement has slowed dramatically since the 2000s and unless some fresh impetus is injected into domestic recycling then England will struggle to reach the 50 per cent EU target for 2020. (And if England misses the target then the UK will too, given the relative populations of the constituent parts of the UK.)

We also need to think about what might happen beyond 2020. It seems likely that the European Commission will again propose 70 per cent recycling targets for 2030 when it brings forward its new Circular Economy Package later in the year. How will we make the additional step-change required to meet these much higher recycling levels if the proposals are brought into effect?

When looking at the challenges ahead, it is important not to lose sight of the great strides forward we have already made. UK household recycling rates have been amongst the best improving across the EU in the past decade (albeit from relatively low levels). Local authorities have responded well to regulatory drivers and introduced services across the country to drive recycling rates up.

Two factors have contributed significantly to improving rates: falling total waste arisings; and garden waste. Since around 2008, the majority of the increase in household recycling rates has come from falls in total volumes of local authority waste. Increases in recycling tonnages have only contributed towards a minority of the overall rise in recycling rates during that period. At the same time, around 40 per cent of recycling has been provided from the composting of garden waste.

We are now faced with trends working in the opposite direction. Local authority tonnages appear to be growing in line with the economy once again, while the extreme budgetary pressures faced by the public sector are forcing some councils to reduce the provision of organics recycling, e.g. through the introduction of fees for garden waste collections. These trends could now put downward pressure on recycling rates, which could be further reduced through improved reporting as a result of the MF Regulations’ introduction.

But how have they done it in Wales? The presence of statutory targets for individual authorities probably focuses the minds to a greater degree (although admittedly the fines for non-compliance have to date been waived). Strong support has also been provided by the central administration, not least through the provision of higher funding levels.

Both these options (statutory targets and greater funding support) are likely to prove unappealing to ministers in Westminster. So what can we do instead?

A quick and easy short-term fix could be provided simply by counting the recycling we already do, but don’t include in the figures. In particular, the recycling of bottom ash from energy recovery plants in roads and other construction projects is widely adopted but not included in local authorities’ reported recycling rates. Counting ash recycling would give a quick (and cheap) option for meeting our near-term 50 per cent targets.

But in the context of future 70 per cent targets, we will have to do more. Important longer-term options for achieving Welsh recycling rates on English budgets could include increased harmonisation of collection services and producer responsibility reform. These need to be carefully considered.

Falling local authority budgets and rising performance requirements mean that the municipal waste funding gap is growing. We need to attack it from both ends: find innovation and efficiencies to reduce costs from the top; and then tap new sources of funding to raise revenues from the bottom.