Community groups attack landfill sites and incinerators in new report

That is the claim from Friends of the Earth, in a report based on interviews with 50 community groups, many of which also actively promote recycling and waste reduction.

Mike Childs, the pressure group's senior campaigner on industry and pollution, said that civil servants seeking ways to reduce waste, increase recycling and encourage the sustainable use of resources were not talking to communities living with incinerators landfills or recycling schemes.

“These groups should not be dismissed as 'nimby'. Instead they should be recognised as self taught experts with unique perspectives and a valuable contribution to make,” he said.

Recommendations from these groups include:

• ban incineration or introduce a moratorium
• increase the landfill tax, introduce a tax on incineration and remove its subsidies
• scrap the landfill tax credit scheme and put the money into recycling
• increase national recycling and composting targets, aim for 'zero waste'
• charge people for the amount of waste they discard
• make manufacturers responsible for recycling their products at the end of their lives and for disposal costs

Some groups said that the Environment Agency is so poor that it should be disbanded, and attacked it for appearing to see itself mainly as an advisory body to industry.

The report's researcher Jennifer Bates noted: “There has been much condemnation of the Environment Agency, with sorry tales from those next to incinerators and landfill sites of it not doing its job properly.”

Ms Bates continued: “What has come through is that these local communities are clear and practical about the issues and the blockages to making things better, coming up with solutions which might be practical or legislative.

“There is incredible consistency. Essentially, that we don't need incineration, we must recycle and treat waste locally. Those involved with incinerators do not think we should just go on with landfill as usual, and those involved with landfill do not think the way forward is incineration at all.

“Those involved with recycling are not trying to maximise their recyclate – they and the others all talk of waste minimisation.”

The community groups also called for conflicts of interest to be removed, for example where councils are responsible both for a waste contract and for planning permission.

Separating waste disposal contracts from recycling contracts was seen as important.