Wales recycles 49% for second successive quarter

Householders in Wales have recycled 49% of their waste for the second successive quarter, according to figures published by the Welsh Government today (April 12).

Data from October to December 2011 shows that almost half of local authority municipal waste was sent for recycling. This comes after 49% was recycled in the preceding quarter (see letsrecycle.com story) and represents a record 6% increase against the same three months in 2010.

Commenting on the figures, Welsh environment minister John Griffiths said that the performance was particularly noteworthy as recycling rates are traditionally lower in winter, when composting tonnages drop off.

He said: Recycling 49% of our waste for the second successive quarter is particularly impressive as rates tend to drop during winter months. This shows that the rate of recycling in Wales continues to increase.

One reason for our good progress is that every local authority in Wales offers weekly food collection services. Separating out food waste not only diverts significant waste away from landfill, it also makes us far more aware of the food we are wasting, which can often result in reduced waste and lower food bills.

Targets

The publication of the figures comes just days after new statutory recycling targets, requiring Welsh councils to recycle 52% of waste in 2012/13, rising to 70% by 2024/25, came into force at the beginning of April 2012.

Mr Griffiths said: The key thing now is that we continue to build on our recycling success so that we can meet our challenging targets of 70% recycling by 2025 and zero waste by 2050.

I am very hopeful that continued effort in 2012 will see us achieving more than 50% recycling in the spring and summer months. This would mean we are diverting more than half our waste away from landfill and gaining value from the majority of our rubbish and really will be a significant milestone.

Statistics

The statistics also show that residual household waste has continued to fall. During OctoberDecember 2011 every person in Wales produced 54 kilograms of waste, a drop of 5 kg per person when compared to October-December 2010.