An Overview of Waste Policy and Laws in the UK

The waste policy and laws in the UK keeps on changing in order to ensure that waste is managed in a manner that does not impact negatively on the environment. With approximately 290 million tonnes of waste produced each year in the UK, the waste policy’s design is geared towards a zero waste economy. An example of waste is methane emissions. This is one of the major contributors to the environmental hazard. It can harm our environment and damage communities if not well managed. The Government is on the forefront fighting against waste damage and ensures that all materials produced are disposed of safely. The waste policy is designed to cost effectively manage waste in a manner that does not negatively impact on the environment.

It is no wonder that significant changes have been made on how waste is produced and disposed of in the UK. This has been largely driven by EU waste laws since the 2000 Waste Strategy for England and Wales’s publication. In 2007, the government published a new waste strategy for England. This strategy is equivalent to Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland waste strategies.  The following is the overview of the key features of the waste policy:

* Waste hierarchy; it gives priority order, in any waste legislation and policy, to prevention, reuse preparation and recycling followed by other methods.

* Diversion of waste from the landfill; this waste policy aims at reducing the level of waste going to landfill. It is based on the waste hierarchy and encourages people to recycle more. In England and Wales, a new restriction on the type and amount of waste that can be disposed of in landfills was imposed by The Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2010, Landfill Allowance Trading Scheme (England) and Landfill Allowance Scheme (Wales).

* Hazardous Waste Disposal; although this waste policy allows a small quantity of hazardous waste to be disposed in the normal waste collection by individual households, specially managed waste facilities have to be used for larger amounts. Hazardous liquid waste, batteries, whole and shredded tyres can no longer be disposed in landfills in the UK. If you produce, move, receive or dispose of such waste, you should get guidance from the Environment Agency on what to do.

* Increase recycling; the general public are encouraged to adopt a recycle and reuse culture. In order for this to happen, they need to consider waste as a resource. As a result, more households in the UK will do more recycling and composting of waste.

* Reduction of waste from the economy, UK waste policy aims at reducing the amount of waste produced by the commercial sector. This has prompted policy changes such as new laws on producer responsibility; the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 2007. These laws also cover Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) and End of Life Vehicles. Businesses are required to recover and recycle a certain amount of packaging. The design of their products should be done in such a way that they can be dismantled and recycled at the end of the life cycle.

* Shared Responsibility; since everyone produces some amount of waste, it is only logical for everyone to take part in preventing further waste growth. The waste policy operates on a shared responsibility basis and expects all parts of society to reuse, recycle and dispose of waste properly.