But the Local Government Association said yesterday that there was an “inescapable need to do more” to bring recycling rates more in line with the rest of Europe.
It is pleasing to see our recycling rates exceed 30% for the first time, but the fact remains other countries on the continent are still recycling up to twice as much.
Cllr Paul Bettison, LGA
On the day the Queen confirmed the inclusion of the Climate Change Bill in this year's Parliamentary session – a Bill that is to bring in trials of household recycling incentives – the LGA argued that the only way to catch up with Europe on recycling was some form of “save as you throw” scheme.
The waste management industry, however, through its trade association the ESA, has said that with 31% of municipal waste being recycled and a further 11% being recycled, England was now “well on the way to being a respectable member of Europe's Recycling Society”.
LGA
The chairman of the LGA's environment board, Cllr Paul Bettison, said following the publication of the new recycling figures by Defra yesterday (see letsrecycle.com story) that residents deserved credit for “substantially improving our performance on waste and recycling over recent years”.
Nevertheless, he said: “Britain is still the dustbin of Europe, throwing more waste into landfill than any other country in the EU. It is pleasing to see our recycling rates exceed 30% for the first time, but the fact remains other countries on the continent are still recycling up to twice as much.”
Cllr Bettison claimed that Britain was the only country in Europe not operating some form of incentive system for recycling.
Although the forthcoming Climate Change Bill is to establish pilot programmes to test household recycling schemes (see letsrecycle.com story), the LGA wants to see councils across the country given the powers to reward householders who recycle their waste.
The local government lobbyists are attempting to play down fears that such incentive schemes would be seen as an “extra stealth tax”.
Cllr Bettison said: “If councils introduce financial incentive schemes, it will be to promote recycling, not to generate extra cash through an extra stealth tax. People who throw away little rubbish, such as older people, would benefit by paying less.”
ESA
Meanwhile, waste industry trade organisation the Environmental Services Association hailed the 30% recycling rate and 42% recovery rate for municipal waste as “good for the environment and, ultimately, good for British business”.
ESA chief executive Dirk Hazell said: “10 years ago, when the Labour government came to office, Europe's recycling revolution had passed Britain by, but today the landscape is transformed. With 31% of municipal waste now being recycled and a further 11% being recovered, we are well on the way to being a respectable member of Europe's Recycling Society.”
Mr Hazell also backed the forthcoming Climate Change Bill proposals to pilot household recycling incentives, saying that such measures were “overdue and could help householders to be more sustainable”. He suggested the waste management industry was in prime position to help government and local authorities try out new incentive schemes.
The ESA chief executive also called for the government to align the forthcoming Planning Bill with the proposed Energy Bill to promote the recovery of energy from waste. He said waste-powered energy generation plants could be developed more quickly than either nuclear or clean coal technologies in the pursuit of Britain's renewable energy targets.
“The waste management industry already provides a third of Britain's genuinely
Proposals for new housing present both opportunities and challenges for our industry. Councils need to be properly resourced to sustain momentum on recycling and they also need to give planning permission for new infrastructure to recover value from waste,” Mr Hazell said.
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