In a significant development regarding waste management, experts have reported that Scotland will start exporting an estimated 100 truckloads of its rubbish each day to England, following the impending implementation of a landfill ban. This measure, set to take effect on December 31, aims to prohibit “black bag” waste from being sent to landfills, but the Scottish government has acknowledged that the existing infrastructure cannot currently handle the required increase in waste processing, specifically through incineration.
With this ban targeting biodegradable municipal waste (BMW), virtually all domestic and commercial rubbish types will be affected. The Scottish government’s ministers have indicated that any export of waste should only be regarded as a “short-term solution,” suggesting that the lasting impact of the landfill ban has not yet been fully realized. The original ban was scheduled to begin in 2021 but faced delays attributed to the Covid-19 pandemic and concerns from businesses regarding their readiness to comply with the new regulations.
Materials that will be banned from Scottish landfills include not just household black bags, but also wood, textiles, certain types of paper, and food waste. The intention behind this initiative is twofold: to mitigate the environmental damage caused by methane emissions from decomposing waste and to shift towards increased rates of recycling and energy recovery from waste. However, despite these intentions, environmental experts have flagged a significant backlog, estimating hundreds of thousands of tonnes of rubbish could be without a processing destination once the ban comes into effect.
Moreover, there has been a visible push in recent months to direct more waste to incineration facilities. Unfortunately, scoping studies have revealed that there are not enough capacities at these sites to accommodate the additional waste. Consequently, Zero Waste Scotland has called out a “capacity gap” expected to reach 600,000 tonnes in the first year of the ban. In an effort to address this, various councils and waste management companies in Scotland are beginning negotiations for “bridging contracts” with waste handling firms in England.
This shift means that instead of incinerating waste domestically, Scotland may resort to sending what it cannot process to landfills situated in England. Notably, there is also a broader national push in the UK to ban biodegradable waste from landfills, but as of yet, no formal policy is established in England to expedite such a transition.
David Balmer, a waste management expert from ERS Remediation, highlighted potential logistical challenges with this scale of waste transportation. He noted that the implementation of 80 to 100 trucks operating daily to transfer waste to facilities in England or potentially further afield is fraught with complications. Similarly, Alasdair Meldrum, from Albion Environmental, raised concerns regarding both the availability of the necessary transport vehicles and the environmental footprint of increased transportation activities, describing the situation as “nonsensical.”
It is worth mentioning that while the current ban aims to reduce greenhouse gases from landfill waste, it may inadvertently contribute to increased emissions from heavy-duty vehicles tasked with transporting waste across the border. The long-term goal was to curb the volume of “black bag” waste generated by households in order to lessen the reliance on incineration. Unfortunately, despite efforts, the domestic recycling rates in Scotland have stagnated over the past decade, rising a mere two percentage points from 41.6% in 2013 to 43.5% by 2023.
Current statistics illustrate that while the recycling rates in England and Northern Ireland are slightly better, Wales has achieved impressive numbers, with rates at 64.7%. In Scotland, the existing system includes eight operational incinerators, with additional ones stalled; the development boom led by incinerator construction was tempered by the Scottish government’s concerns of overcapacity.
In light of these circumstances, it is evident that while the transition towards a more circular economy and improved waste management practices is underway, significant hurdles remain, particularly in infrastructure and public cooperation. Environmental groups continue to voice concerns regarding current methods relying too heavily on incineration, signaling that without significant investment in recycling programs, Scotland’s waste management strategies may not be the sustainable models they aim to be. The Scottish government asserts its commitment to work closely with local councils in addressing these challenges as the December deadline approaches, yet many stakeholders are left wondering if more proactive measures are necessary for true change.