Emphasising the importance of recycling, Charlotte Rule, climate and energy policy advisor at the Environmental Services Association (ESA) said: “It is essential that recycling strategies deliver greater recycling performance over the next decade, particularly for plastics.”
The report recommended limited growth in energy from waste (EfW) plants as the emissions from these have increased by 3% from 2019. And, the CCC said that “the progress in reducing emissions from landfill has been undermined by increased incineration” (see letsrecycle.com story).
‘Necessary changes’
Ms Rule continued: “The ESA has written to Defra calling for urgent clarity on its recycling and waste strategy reforms, so that we can begin implementing the necessary service changes in pursuit of higher recycling performance on an urgent timeline.”
She reasoned that energy recovery is a “complementary component of the UK’s waste management system, with most of the UK’s top performing authorities for recycling, as well as the devolved administrations relying upon it.”
The ESA specialist also made the point that reducing emissions from residual waste treatment will be best achieved through strategies “to boost floundering recycling performance while using carbon capture utilisation and storage (CCUS), where feasible, to mitigate the unavoidable emissions from the material left over.”
‘Urgency’
Others, including the Association for Renewable Energy and Clean Technology (REA) and resources charity WRAP, emphasised the importance of resource efficiency and reducing emissions.
The report highlights the huge untapped potential in greater resource efficiency
WRAP
A spokesperson for WRAP said: “As Lord Deben commented – the UK’s targets are the most ambitious and necessary in the world. But we’re failing to turn them into reality, and time is running out to turn things around.
“The report highlights the huge untapped potential in greater resource efficiency and the need to change the way we make, use, and design products to cut our carbon emissions much further and faster.
“Governments and businesses need to act with urgency and bring citizens along the journey so that they understand where they can act too. Changing ingrained behaviour is notoriously difficult, but it can be done.”
‘Delivery’
Dr Nina Skorupska CBE from REA commented: “The latest CCC report is direct in its assessments and we at the REA echo them. There remain large gaps in energy efficiency policy and, while there has been good progress on the decarbonisation of power, it is clear that much more needs to be done on land use, heat and transport too.
“We do acknowledge the Government’s high level targets and welcome their continued commitment to the energy transition and Net Zero.
“However, in short, we agree with the CCC – the Government’s current strategies will not deliver net zero. The targets are there, but the Government now has to get on with delivery.”
Register for free to comment