Following a good example

The UK leads the world in some fields – we are widely considered to be the experts on health and safety for instance. We do this by following a hierarchy of prevention then reduction then control – after all the job title is health and safety manager, not sickness and accidents manager. By the same token let's talk resource recovery, not waste management, if we are serious about better performance in our industry, and do something to improve our poor position.

David Roman works for Monmouthshire Community Recycling, a partnership between Monmouthshire Environment Trust and May Gurney CIC

The benefit of being so far behind is that it gives a good view of what works and what doesn't. The whole learning curve can be condensed, whether for legislators, manufacturers, consumers, or those of us at the end of the pipe in local authorities and resource recovery industries.

Flanders last year achieved a 72% municipal recycling rate and a residual weight of 156kg per person. The UK's long term targets are last year's news for Flanders. Flanders' 20 year journey to this point is not easily summarised, but some key points:

• recycling services are comprehensive, streamed at source and directly charged;
• producer responsibility both influences packaging design (waste minimisation) and funds recovery services;
• a social enterprise network delivers a consistent, customer focused reuse service for saleable items across the region;
• communications are aimed at achieving behavioural change over time;

The region can build on what it has achieved partly because people have become aware of their waste at the basic kitchen bin level.

This is not some freakish little oasis of good practice – it is a region with twice the population of Wales, and it is nearly matched by neighbouring Western European nations. Behavioural change not only boosts their performance now but future-proofs resource recovery systems against predictable challenges such as growth in WEEE, fluctuations in international markets, and peak oil.

Some parts of the UK are diverting over 60% already through changing the emphasis of their collection systems. But some local authorities, including those with the highest recycling rates, have made minimal changes to what they expect from householders or collection crews – understandable, but avoiding the bigger issues. It is worth evaluating what meets long term targets and reduces whole system costs as landfill or alternative disposal routes steadily increase in price. We are reaching a tipping point, where we can no longer just change the point where we tip.

The mark of a good recycling system is that it makes people think, however briefly, thereby contributing to the next big challenges – reuse and reduction. On that front UK legislatures can do worse than to copy what works elsewhere. The public and political will is there. Zero waste (or darn close) is an achievable quick win against climate change and an opportunity for the UK to lead the field.