Launching consultation on a review of England's waste strategy, the minister said that his Department's projection for the amount of waste to be dealt with by energy from waste plants has fallen to 27% by 2020. “This represents a huge reduction in what we think we will need waste to energy to provide,” said Mr Bradshaw.
This 27% figure is down from an earlier likely 30-40% level – Waste Strategy 2000 proposed recovering value from 67% of municipal waste by 2015 and recycling/composting at least 33% of household waste by 2015.
Click here to see an interview with Mr Bradshaw at today's launch (MPG video in a pop-up window)
Explaining some of the key proposals in the draft strategy, Mr Bradshaw noted the case for some new energy from waste plants and increases in recycling to 40% by 2010, while he cast landfill as the worst waste option.
The minister highlighted a proposal for “significant increases in recycling. The current target of 30% in 2010 will go up to 40%, higher targets for 2015 and 50% for 2020.”
The launch saw Mr Bradshaw continue to emphasise the need to allow for more energy from waste alongside recycling with landfill cast as the worst option. And, he took a firm line with NGOs that attack the idea of more energy from waste. “What puzzles me is that I have talked to NGOs a lot about this. They hold up Sweden, Germany and Norway as countries that deal with waste better than us but they all have more incineration.”
Worst option
Mr Bradshaw repeatedly pointed out that landfill in terms of sustainable waste management was the worst environmental option – “the worst possible way of dealing with waste”. He reminded his audience that “of the 72% of waste we are sending to landfill, we will have to get that 72 down to 25% by 2020. Sending biodegradable waste to landfill is the worst possible thing we can do. If we can recover energy in a clean and careful way we are recovering a resource.”
And, he highlighted how landfill is not used by other European countries to the extent it is by the UK. “We are out of kilter with other European countries even though we have done better in recent years.”
The minister also issued a stern reminder to local authorities explaining that councils would gain by recycling and needed to avoid landfill. “The more they send to landfill, they are clobbered by the Landfill Tax and will have to buy more landfill allowances.”
Exports
Mr Bradshaw also touched on a number of specific issues in the consultation, which closes on May 9.
On the issue of sending recovered material such as paper and plastics overseas for reprocessing, he said: “I am not unhappy that there are markets for waste to be recycled. Like markets in general, these markets are international. This strategy does suggest we look at ways to develop markets at home. I would like stronger markets here I don't bemoan the fact that we have export markets.
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Plastic bag tax
The minister emphasised that waste prevention, reduction and minimisation remain at the top of the waste hierarchy. But, responding to questions about plastic bags being one of the easiest ways to minimise waste, he ruled out a plastic tax in the foreseeable future.
“We are currently monitoring and evaluating the scheme in the Republic of Ireland. A tax is a matter for the Treasury and the jury is still out on the efficiency and efficacy of a plastic bag tax.”
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