Waste Materials and Resources

Waste materials have often been referred to as material resources in the wrong place at the wrong time. Major recyclates include batteries, compost, end of life vehicles (ELVs), glass, metals, packaging waste, paper, plastics, textiles, tyres, waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), and wood. Other generic categories of waste materials from which the recyclates generally arise include household, commercial, industrial, agricultural and hazardous wastes (a cross sectoral group of wastes requiring special handling and treatment). The waste materials news is summarised below and you can use the links provided to gain further insight into waste/resource issues.

Tetra Pak recycling arrives in Wiltshire (10/07/2008)
People in Wiltshire will be able to recycle their Tetra Pak cartons for the first time this month. More...World's first mixed plastic bottle recycling plant to produce food grade plastic (30/06/2008)
A revolutionary plant in London that recycled plastic soft drink and milk bottles back into useful packaging has opened in London. More...Household Plastics Collection Survey 2008 (09/06/2008)
Approximately 182,000 tonnes of plastic bottles were collected in the UK in 2007. More...Construction 'Net Waste Tool' available online (30/05/2008)
WRAP has announced a new online resource it has developed for use by construction clients, designers and contractors More...LGA calls for retailers and producers to fund packaging waste collection (29/05/2008)
The call for action follows the LGA's publication today (Thurs) of its second investigation into the weight of retailer packaging and how much of it can be recycled. More...BSI PAS 100 compost to be used in Yorkshire commercial brownfield redevelopment (15/05/2008)
The site’s former use as a colliery and coking plant has left the soil devoid of nutrients and unable to support plant life. More...Use of recycled PVC granules saves 94% of carbon emissions (14/05/2008)
Manufacturing new building products from recycled PVC-U has about 6% of the global warming impact of using virgin polymer, according to new calculations by plastic recycler, Axion Recycling. More...Does escalating landfill tax effect fly-tipping? (13/05/2008)
An important question has been raised by the Conservatives as to what effect does increasing landfill tax have on the fly-tipping of waste materials. More...English Quarter 2 municipal waste statistics show 33.2% annual recycling (12/05/2008)
Total municipal waste has arising marginally decreased from 29.1 million tonnes to 29.0 million tonnes, or around 0.3%. More...UK homes lose £10 billion by wasting food! (09/05/2008)
New research is probably the most comprehensive study of its kind ever carried out and reveals that the average household throws out £420 of good food a year More...An environmental roadmap for milk industry launched (03/05/2008)
By 2020 half of all milk packaging will be made from recycled materials according to Defra and the UK dairy industry at the launch of the Milk Roadmap yesterday. More...West London composter to have largest 'in-vessel 'capacity in Europe (29/04/2008)
Eight compost production sites across the UK are reaping the financial rewards thanks to funding and business advice from WRAP. More...New calculations raise recycled polystyrene's environmental credentials (22/04/2008)
New calculations show the recycled material has about 6% of the global warming impact of virgin polystyrene. More...Utilities companies commit to groundbreaking agreement (02/04/2008)
The first construction agreement of its kind launched More...Research on weekly food waste collections highlighted by the UK Government (28/03/2008)
Brook Lyndhurst worked with the Resource Recovery Forum and Waste Watch, on the project 'Enhancing participation in kitchen waste collection schemes'. More...Expansion plans for food grade plastics recycling (11/03/2008)
Closed Loop Recycling announced yesterday, a major expansion programme with a number of possible locations for the second food grade plastics recycling plant identified around the UK. More...Defra unveils latest litter survey (04/03/2008)
Environment Minister Jonathan Shaw today urged the public and local authorities to continue the fight for cleaner streets as he published a new environmental survey. More...Most SMEs unaware of WEEE Regulations (14/02/2008)
In a recent survey by the Environment Agency, only 12 percent of SMEs could name the WEEE regulations without being prompted. More...UK Government reveals 2008 packaging waste recycling targets (12/02/2008)
The UK Government intends to increase its targets for packaging waste recovery and recycling in Great Britain from 2008 onwards. More...Hot stuff in packaging recycling at Billingsgate Fish Market (12/02/2008)
The first 'Clean Heat Packer' plastic recycling machine in the Europe has just been installed in the City of London Corporation's Billingsgate Market. More...HP’s 2007 recycling increase over twice weight of Titanic (06/02/2008)
HP recently announced it recycled nearly 250 million pounds (113,400 tonnes) of hardware and print cartridges globally 2007. More...New campaign promotes retread tyres for light commercial vehicles (05/02/2008)
A new campaign, promoting the use of retread tyres as a safe, durable, cost-effective and environmentally friendly alternative to new tyres, has been launched by WRAP. More...WRAP funding for Rotherham plaster board recycling facility (29/01/2008)
WRAP funding will enable a major Rotherham recycling facility to process an additional 85,000 tonnes of waste plasterboard over the next five years. More...Enhance provides £133k funding to London tyre recycler (20/12/2007)
The Enhance Capital Fund has provided a grant of £133,000 to help Edmonton-based London Tyre Recycling (LTR) become established and provide a solution to the UK’s huge waste tyre problem. More...Valpak launches text service for recycling information (19/12/2007)
Valpak announced recently, that its recycling information web site recycle-more.co.uk, has launched a new text service to provide recycling information. More...Crumbs! – Surface Repolymerisation breaks the re-tread mould (10/12/2007)
New WRAP funded research has demonstrated that high rates of crumb rubber from waste tyres can be successfully incorporated into retread compounds for road truck and earthmover tyres. More...Appointments made to new UK WEEE advisory body (05/12/2007)
The UK Government has announced the appointment of the Chair, Peter Calliafas, and 12 members of a new WEEE Advisory Body. More...Major initiative to aid packaging recycling (03/12/2007)
Retailers are looking to replace the current range of symbols and messages on packaging, with a single logo. More...Hazardous waste up while landfill down in 2006 (03/12/2007)
The amount of hazardous waste sent to landfill fell to 900,000 tonnes - down 60% on 2004 - while recycling and re-use increased to 1.3 million tonnes (up 64%). More...Walloping Waste through BBC Good Food Show (30/11/2007)
The “Love Food Hate Waste” campaign came to the BBC Good Food Show in Birmingham this week to meet the public and raise awareness of the huge issue of food waste. More...Breakthrough for fire retardant, recycled polymer (29/11/2007)
Axion Polymers, a division of plastics recycler Axion Recycling, claims a technical breakthrough in the production of a new flame retardant impact styrene formulation with high recycled content following successful laboratory trials. More...Tyre reprocessors meet new quality standards (27/11/2007)
A new list of 28 tyre reprocessors who have voluntarily registered their operations’ compliance with a series of quality control standards has been published. More...Falkirk tackles food waste (22/11/2007)
Wasted food fills up landfill sites and adds to global warming according to Falkirk Council, as it sets to tackle the issue. More...Dry-cleaning waste plastic, reduces water consumption (21/11/2007)
High levels of interest have been shown in a novel ‘dry cleaning’ technology for plastic waste and could lead to significantly greater recycling of the material in the UK. More...REVAMP gets a WEEE Royal visit (20/11/2007)
REVAMP, the Waste, Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) re-use and recycling subsidiary of SOFA Project, received a royal visit by HRH Princess Royal last Tuesday to commend the work carried out in Bristol and across the West of England. More...Recycled and secondary aggregates get research backing (19/11/2007)
New research shows the leaching performance of concrete containing recycled and secondary aggregates to be similar to concrete made using aggregates from primary sources. More...UK first for £60m wood burning station (13/11/2007)
A £60M wood burning power station was opened yesterday by Energy Minister Malcolm Wicks at the Wilton International manufacturing site, on Teesside. More...Municipal recycling smashes the 30% barrier (07/11/2007)
Defra released yesterday, its first set of estimates from the 2006/7 survey of municipal waste showing that English local authorities have broken the 30% barrier for recycling of municipal and household wastes. More...New use for waste MDF in wood-plastic composites (05/11/2007)
Banbury, Oxon, England: The launch of an innovative project to demonstrate whether recycled MDF can be used in place of virgin wood flour in the manufacture of wood plastic composites (WPCs), has been announced by WRAP. More...UK’s “largest” plastic recycling plant launched (04/11/2007)
Skelmersdale, Lancs., England: Intercontinental Recycling Limited (IRL) has opened a multi-million pound plastics recycling plant at its site in Skelmersdale. More...Model predicts growth for Scottish sustainable aggregates (31/10/2007)
The demand for aggregate in Scotland is forecast to grow by an average of 1.17% a year until 2018 with recycled and secondary aggregates taking a 20% market share by 2012. More...Bill on excess packaging laid before Parliament (25/10/2007)
London, UK: Liberal Democrat, Jo Swinson presented a Bill to Parliament on Tuesday setting out measures she considers necessary to cut excess packaging. More...Urgent supermarket action needed on packaging, says LGA report (23/10/2007)
London, UK: Supermarkets must take urgent action to reduce excessive packaging or Britain will fail to meet its recycling targets, according to a warning today from the Local Government Association. More...Cotswold to slash amounts of waste landfilled (17/10/2007)
Cotswold District Council have voted overwhelmingly to introduce a new waste service which is aimed at reducing the amount of rubbish the District sends to landfill sites by an estimated 20%. This should reduce municipal wastes landfilled from 24000 to 19000 tonnes per year. More...UK Government proposes tougher targets for packaging waste (12/10/2007)
London, UK: The Government intends to issue new targets for packaging waste recycling and recovery effective from January 2008 to help the UK meet its obligations under the EC Packaging Directive, under new proposals from Defra. More...Irish recycling rate for WEEE continues to grow (08/10/2007)
The successful WEEE programme in Ireland has lead to continued growth in the recycling rate, but producers need to do more on recovering smaller items and reuse. More...Scottish Glass Recycling Success (05/10/2007)
Over the last year over 4,000 tonnes of glass bottles and jars have been collected for recycling in the Scottish Highlands according to Viridor Waste Management. More...New Irish Waste Tyre Regulations Launched (05/10/2007)
New initiative will improve data on waste tyres and encourage more recycling. More...Glass recycling benefits as bulk wine imports take off (28/09/2007)
Bulk importing of wine into the UK has shown important and significantly increases in the last 12 months, according to WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme). More...Horticultural PVC recycling grows (28/09/2007)
Recovinyl, the PVC-U industry’s recycling initiative, is looking for growth in recycling waste material from the UK’s horticultural sector. More...Rolls-Royce Finds Solution to Polystyrene Waste (26/09/2007)
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, of Rotherham UK, is always looking to be greener and recycle more materials from their production site in Chichester More...Used Tyres Into Roof Tiles (21/09/2007)
Trials have been undertaken of a new innovative roof tile that may give a further valuable outlet for recycled tyres and plastics. More...Waste evidence programme will help build knowledge (19/09/2007)
A waste and resources evidence programme to help deliver the Government's waste strategy has been outlined today by the UK Government. More...Over 50% dissatisfied with geological storage of nuclear waste (14/09/2007)
Over half (51%) of those who took part in stakeholder events last Saturday were either dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with the Government's proposal to manage new nuclear waste in the same manner as legacy waste (geological storage). More...Confusion over biopolymers leads to WRAP statement (11/09/2007)
Most consumers are confused about the wide range of new materials emerging with ‘biodegradable’, ‘home compostable’, ‘compostable’ and ‘degradable’ labels being introduced in the UK as bags, pots, trays, films or bottle formats, according to new consumer research. More...Going green with PVC (10/09/2007)
Cladding and window cills made from 100% recycled PVC-U are examples of how PVC can be sustainably used in new building products without any loss of performance, according to Axion Recycling, Recovinyl’s UK agents. More...Use of recycled paper in UK set to dramatically increase (06/09/2007)
Print and paper buyers are planning to significantly increase their use of recycled paper over the next five years according to new research. More...UK first for PVC roof membrane recycling (04/09/2007)
The UK’s first dedicated PVC single ply roofing membrane recycling scheme is planned, following successful trials. More...OU unveils community composting profile (29/08/2007)
This is the first time a comprehensive profile of the community composting sector has been obtained and published. More...GlassRite saves 4500 tonnes of carbon annually (24/08/2007)
Major inroads into glass packaging waste are being made by the UK wine industry which is set to save 6,000 tonnes of glass packaging annually through lightweighting. More...New Covent Garden Market targets zero waste to landfill (24/08/2007)
The New Covent Garden Market is getting to grips with its waste thanks to help from the Enhance business support programme. More...Hambleton gives boost to Tetrapak’s carton recycling campaign (21/08/2007)
Hambleton Council has distributed recycling banks for food cartons across the District Council’s area in support of Tetrapak’s national campaign to recycle more of these common packaging wastes. More...PAS 105 sets standard for recovered paper (17/08/2007)
A new quality assurance document has set the standard for recovered paper. More...Welsh construction firms urged to tackle 6 million tonnes of waste (15/08/2007)
Construction companies in Wales are being urged to take action in reducing their wastes and improve their bottom line. More...PVC recycling set to exceed 2007 target (09/08/2007)
Latest figures show the Recovinyl scheme is set to exceed its PVC-U recycling target for 2007 More...A snapshot of WEEE one month on (08/08/2007)
It is now just over one month since the various requirements of the WEEE regulations became effective in the England and Wales. This has given the larger waste management company’s such as Viridor, an opportunity to view the effects of the new approach. More...Contaminants barrier to WEEE recycling (07/08/2007)
Contaminants within WEEE waste streams are one of the biggest barriers to the effective recycling of waste plastic from waste electronic and electrical equipment (WEEE)..... More...Tetrapak boosts recycling of food cartons (06/08/2007)
Tetrapak in conjunction with the carton industry body ACE UK (Alliance for Beverage Cartons and the Environment) are busy promoting the recycling of paper based drinks cartons through key partnerships. More...Harlow empowers battery potential (31/07/2007)
Following a successful pilot, Harlow Council announced today that the kerbside battery recycling initiative will go council wide. More...New report published on tyre-derived steel and fibre (31/07/2007)
WRAP research has identified potential end uses for difficult to recycle waste tyre components. More...Recovering energy from waste wood better than recycling (25/07/2007)
Joan Ruddock responds to a written question on wood recycling in the House of Commons. More...Market Intelligence On Recovered Paper (23/07/2007)
A new report containing in-depth analysis of the market for recovered paper has been published by WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme). More...Municipal waste statistics again under fire (17/07/2007)
The Mayor of London has reiterated his concerns about alternate weekly collections following yesterday's select committee report and he highlights findings on municipal waste statistics. More...New process for CRTs developed (10/07/2007)
Competition is keen in the cathode ray tube (CRT) treatment business and a new process has been developed to deal with the problem. More...20% recycled aggregate in concrete – no problem! (09/07/2007)
A new research report shows that using 20% recycled aggregate blended with natural aggregate, has no negative impact on concrete performance. More...Smallest Scottish County excels in recycling (06/07/2007)
Scotland's smallest local authority is seen to be leading the way in the recycling field, according to data released by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency. More...Platinum recovery from street sweepings? (06/07/2007)
Cardiff University researchers are undertaking collaborative research work to investigate the potential for recycling precious metals from road dusts and vehicle exhausts. More...WEEE Day for Electrical Producers (29/06/2007)
Electrical producers will have to meet the environmental costs of dealing with waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) from 1st July 2007 across the UK. More...Scottish Ministers decline to endorse deep storage (29/06/2007)
The Scottish government earlier this week, declined to endorse plans to consult on proposals to bury nuclear waste in deep geological facilities in Scotland. More...Industry to tackle 2 million tonne electrical waste problem (29/06/2007)
The new Department of Enterprise, Business and Regulatory Reform has issued further information on the WEEE Regulations which come into effect on 1 July. More...Major organisations commit to packaging reductions (19/06/2007)
Nine of the UK’s biggest brand owners and manufacturers have shown a strong commitment to reduce the amount of packaging waste that ends up in the household waste according to an announcement from WRAP. More...DTI Approval for AWM as Designated Collection Facility (14/06/2007)
AWM Group has announced that the Department of Trade and Industry has confirmed that the company’s Dudley site has been approved as a Designated Collection Facility (DCF. More...Diminishing municipal waste? (13/06/2007)
Private waste collectors are now gearing up to directly target household wastes. More...Over £2.5m invested in wood recycling facilities (08/06/2007)
Two wood recycling projects, each valued at a million pound plus, are to receive £670,000 of WRAP support funding, which will increase the quantity of post-consumer wood waste diverted from landfill. More...Plastic bottle recycling experiences continued growth (08/06/2007)
Plastic bottle recycling continues to go from strength to strength with 92% of UK local authorities now offering recycling collection facilities for plastic bottles, according to new research. More...WEEE cooperation twixt north and south in Ireland (07/06/2007)
Two company’s, located in Northern Ireland and the Republic are co-operating on the management of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). More...European first for UK with £69m Immingham food waste plant (06/06/2007)
EnCycle has obtained planning consent from the North East Lincolnshire Council to develop an energy from food waste power plant at Immingham. More...Year Two for the Waste Protocols Project (01/06/2007)
The Environment Agency and WRAP have announced the waste streams that will be included in the second year of the Waste Protocols Project following a successful first year. More...Trade waste distortions in municipal statistics? (31/05/2007)
Mayor takes concerns about London’s waste to European Commission More...Weekly food waste collection for St Albans (24/05/2007)
In a move that may reflect the future nationally in waste collection, St Albans City and District Council has said that food waste will continue to be collected every week, even after the proposed introduction of an alternate week waste collection system in mid-2008. More...Guidance gives clarity on packaging design (23/05/2007)
A new online guide to help the retail sector meet its packaging reduction commitments has been launched by WRAP. The launch took place at the Total Processing and Packaging Show, NEC, last week. More...Wine trade faces key carbon choices (21/05/2007)
Bulk importing of wine into the UK delivers significant reductions in CO2 emissions according to a new WRAP report, but savings can vary significantly depending on the transport and packaging used. More...VCA appointed as WEEE distributor enforcement body (18/05/2007)
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), today appointed the Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA) as the enforcement body for the distributor obligations under the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations. More...EU reviews the Animal By-products Regulations (17/05/2007)
The European Union is reviewing the Animal By Products Regulation (EC) No 1774/2002 and has issued an on-line consultation in the form of a questionnaire. More...Glass and plastic bottles scoop packaging awards (16/05/2007)
A glass bottle and a plastic bottle scooped four awards last night at the 2007 Starpack Packaging Awards, held at the National Motorcycle Museum in Birmingham. More...New sports pitch from used plane tyres (15/05/2007)
A Stokesley floodlit sports area has re-opened after a £43,000 revamp using old plane tyres! More...Tyre recycling quality standards set (15/05/2007)
Two new tyre standards have been released by WRAP working in conjunction with the British Standards Institute. More...Outdoor furniture from board? - simply a picnic (14/05/2007)
Gayle Blanchflower from OutABox was presented with the best environmental product award at the recent British Female Inventors and Innovators awards ceremony. More...Import wine but not the bottles! (11/05/2007)
Wrap toasts the environmental benefits of a new wine import facility. More...UK's world leading HDPE recycling technology (10/05/2007)
WRAP has released the findings from a large scale trial into the commercial viability of producing recycled plastic milk bottles from food-grade HDPE. More...Compost producers celebrate industry growth (04/05/2007)
A WRAP study finds that 35 per cent of landscape professionals have increased their use of compost produced from recycled garden material by ten per cent or more More...Bill Bryson to head campaign on littering (03/05/2007)
Bill is a keen campaigner on littering and plans to head a new campaign to try to reduce the amount of littering and fly tipping. More...Preventing cigarette litter in Britain (02/05/2007)
It is estimated that there are over ten million smokers in England who from 1 July will not be able to smoke in virtually any enclosed workplaces and public places in England. More...Supply logistics innovator wins top award (27/04/2007)
Using a sustainable approach to materials supply to construction sites, Wilson James aims to recycle 70% of site waste materials and help minimise construction waste. More...News bites (19/04/2007)
Sainsbury's ban degradable bags (for a day). East Devon residents support battery trial. Terex Pegson jaw crusher for St Austell recycler. More...WEEE Directive could 'harm' the environment (19/04/2007)
A warning has been issued by Digital Links that implementation of the WEEE Directive on 1 July could harm the environment and reduce the number of refurbished computers available to third world countries such as Africa. More...Yorkshire and Humber set to save £millions on food waste (18/04/2007)
Food manufacturers, caterers and retailers in Yorkshire and Humber are being given the opportunity to work together and make their food waste recycling easy and cost effective. More...Recresco establishes the UK’s first tri-colour glass sorting facility (17/04/2007)
Recresco, a growing recycling company, has developed the first tri-colour sorting plant for mixed glass in the UK. More...Sydney hazwaste destined for Germany (16/04/2007)
A company is seeking Australian Government approval to export 15,000 tonnes of toxic waste materials to Europe. More...Leicestershire compost used at Beckham towers (13/04/2007)
Leicestershire compost is reputed to be used by the Beckhams as well as finding a use at the Eden Project, Cornwall. More...A cut glass solution for wine connoisseurs (12/04/2007)
WRAP is exhibiting at the London International Wine & Spirits Fair and is leading a groundbreaking programme for glass waste minimisation. More...International news bites (12/04/2007)
Shipping lines to raise paper waste transport costs. Warming Artic could release frozen waste. US study confirms waste cell phones to be potentially polluting. More...Tata Steel completes £6.2bn acquisition of Corus (11/04/2007)
The enlarged company will have an estimated crude steel production of 27 million tonnes in 2007 and will be the world’s fifth largest steel producer with 84,000 employees across four continents. More...A rose by any other name…. (11/04/2007)
Dancing on ice star, actress Gaynor Faye launches the Recycle Now Home Composting campaign for 2007 with a rosy pose(y). More...An innovative spirit - whisky that is! (10/04/2007)
The Co-op has rolled out the world’s lightest spirit bottle. Weighing in at only 298 grams it really is the fly-weight of the whisky world. More...Agency makes allowance for problematic hazardous wastes (10/04/2007)
The Environment Agency has issued a briefing note in relation to problematic hazardous wastes with a high total organic carbon (TOC), making some allowance for their landfill up to June 2008. More...Packaging research nets savings for M&S (03/04/2007)
Marks and Spencer is set to save on the material it using for packaging due to an innovative WRAP funded project. More...Site Waste Management Plans to cut waste (02/04/2007)
Proposals for reducing the 109 million tones of waste produced by the UK construction industry every year were published today for consultation by Defra. More...Agency urges WEEE producers to sign up (30/03/2007)
The Environment Agency urges producers to continue to sign up to WEEE schemes. More...Recycled aggregates capital support programme launched (30/03/2007)
The Aggregates programme has identified a need to improve the quantity and quality of RSAs which are produced locally from waste materials that would have otherwise been landfilled (closes 28 May 2007). More...Milton Keynes food scheme a recycling success (27/03/2007)
More food waste in Milton Keynes is to be recycled after a successful pilot scheme to cut down on household waste going to landfill. More...Funding for green energy projects offers recycled wood opportunities (27/03/2007)
The Scottish Executive has announced that more than 70 biomass projects across Scotland are to share £10.5 million in a programme aimed at reducing CO2 emissions by 37,000 tonnes a year. More...New use for used tyres (27/03/2007)
A Cheshire company, Dunweedin has come up with a new use for waste tyres. More...Shetland glass company paves the way (21/03/2007)
A Shetland glass recycling company has exported its first recycled glass paving slabs to the mainland. More...Agricultural waste 15 May 2007 deadline is rapidly approaching (19/03/2007)
The 15 May deadline for the registration of exemptions for farm wastes is rapidly approaching and this makes waste a major issue in farming. More...Viridor and Electrolink forge WEEE Partnership (15/03/2007)
Viridor Waste Management has teamed up with WEEE Producer Compliance Scheme, Electrolink. More...Scottish Household Survey (2006 - Quarter 3) (12/03/2007)
The Scottish Executive has published its Household survey, which includes responses to questions on recycling. More...New and improved recycling centre service for Norfolk (07/03/2007)
Following the decision by Norfolk County Council to appoint SRM as preferred bidder for its £500 million residual waste management contract in a reversal of fortunes for WRG, the council has also chosen a new contractor to manage its recycling centres. More...Research on the carbon impacts of waste (07/03/2007)
Defra and WRAP have published research on how waste can be managed to reduce its impacts on climate change in three reports. More...Environmental blitz in Haringey (06/03/2007)
Operation 'Clean Sweep'' has brought visible results to streets of Haringey. Environmental teams were joined by Councillors and senior council staff in a major exercise to clean up local streets and estates and generally improve the quality of life for residents. More...Series of WEEE deadlines looming (05/03/2007)
Several deadline or target dates relating to the WEEE regulations are rapidly approaching following the publication by the Environment Agency of the full list of producer compliance schemes. More...Household waste reduction - Scottish Action Plan (28/02/2007)
A plan to cut the amount of household waste by a quarter of a million tonnes in Scotland was published yesterday by the Scottish Executive. More...CD&E wastes - Survey indicates 88.6m tonnes of English CD & E waste arose in 2005 (27/02/2007)
The objective of the survey was to establish estimates for the arisings and use as aggregate of construction and demolition and excavation waste in England in 2005. More...Opportunities for plaster board recycling (26/02/2007)
Trials funded by WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme) have shown that the recycling of waste plasterboard from commercial refurbishment is economically viable, according to a report published today. More...EA approve more WEEE Producer Compliance Schemes (26/02/2007)
Following the initial approval of 5 Producer Compliance Schemes earlier this month, the Environment Agency has now produced an updated list of schemes at the 23 February together with a provisional list of schemes which may be subject to later approval. More...Public Inquiry into Warrington waste treatment plant (23/02/2007)
A public inquiry is to be held into a controversial plan to build a waste treatment plant on Winwick Road, Warrington. More...SEPA approves WEEE compliance schemes (22/02/2007)
The Scottish Environmental Protection Agency has revealed that it has approved a number of producer compliance schemes (PCSs) under the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations, 2006. More...Zero litter tolerance in Gloucester wins award (21/02/2007)
A campaign to clean up Gloucester using a zero tolerance approach, has won gold in a prestigious regional award. More...WEEE first for Newport (20/02/2007)
Newport council is the first council to use new WEEE containers at its civic amenity site. More...Britvic to phase out re-usable bottles by 2008 (19/02/2007)
Britvic, the soft drinks company, is moving from returnable to recyclable glass bottles with phasing out of returnables by 2008 More...Protest march against Didcot ash disposal (19/02/2007)
Campaigners held a protest march against the use of Radley Lakes in Oxfordshire for ash disposal from Didcot power station following the granting of planning consent. More...New Forest gets a tree and smashes recycling record (16/02/2007)
Alupro presented a 5ft Alder tree to mark the milestone of more than 100 tonnes of aluminium cans being recycled in the New Forest during 2006 and residents break previous glass recycling records. More...PRNs - regulatory changes following going electronic (14/02/2007)
In order to support the maintenance and development of the NPWD, Defra ha indicated that there will be a corresponding increase in fees. More...Agency approves WEEE compliance schemes (13/02/2007)
The Environment Agency recently issued a list of approved compliance schemes under the requirements of the WEEE regulations. More...News bites (12/02/2007)
$25m for best scheme to remove CO2 from atmosphere. Fight Against Envirocrime gets Technological Boost. Companies combine to shred tyre mountain. More...News bites (07/02/2007)
REPIC introduces cradle to grave tracking for WEEE. The Independent wages war on waste. Holmen keen to get going with Tilbury Dock MRF. Balcan gets approval for on-site lamp crushing. More...EA issues WEEE reminder (02/02/2007)
Companies who produce electrical and electronic equipment are being reminded by the Environment Agency to register in order to comply with the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations. More...Packaging waste website set to cut fraud (01/02/2007)
A new and improved website for packaging waste information will help companies to meet packaging recycling regulations and tackle fraud. More...Pirelli and Vacu-lug join forces (01/02/2007)
Pirelli UK Tyres Ltd is joining forces with Vacu-Lug, the UK’s largest independent retread manufacturer, in a strategic alliance that will strengthen the position of both companies. More...Abitibi-Consolidated and Bowater to combine in merger (29/01/2007)
Abitibi-Consolidated and Bowater to combine in merger of equals that will create global leader in publication papers. More...WRAP’s Materials Pricing out to Tender (29/01/2007)
WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme) has put the production of its Materials Pricing Report out to competitive tender. The deadline for receipt of tender submissions is 12:30pm on Monday 19 February. More...Chinese bites (25/01/2007)
China's boom bodes well for UK recyclate exports China may curb waste imports. More...Business waste data shows 9m tonnes annually in Scotland (24/01/2007)
Scottish businesses produce around 9m tonnes of waste annually, according to a national survey commissioned by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA). More...Fire hits Suffolk MRF (23/01/2007)
A fire, thought to have been started by a piece of machinery, affected a Viridor materials recycling facility (MRF) at Great Blackenham, Suffolk yesterday. More...Sustainable construction - Clients hold the key (17/01/2007)
Demand for construction materials with high recycled content in new building projects is increasingly being driven by some of the construction industry’s largest clients according to WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme). More...TV message in a bottle (16/01/2007)
A new TV advertising campaign encouraging people to recycle more glass bottles and jars has hit our screens as part of the latest phase of television advertising from Recycle Now. More...Capacity of waste management facilities at March 2005 in England and Wales (12/01/2007)
According to Environment Agency statistics released yesterday, 686 million cubic metres of landfill voidspace remained on permitted sites in England and Wales at 31/3/2005. More...Hertfordshire public consultation on waste strategy (11/01/2007)
The Hertfordshire Waste Partnership is consulting on its waste strategy so that it can take account of public opinion before it formalises the strategy. The results of the consultation process will be published in early summer. More...Life Cycle Analysis of Plasterboard (11/01/2007)
Work on the life cycle assessment of gypsum sources is about to be undertaken by the Waste Resources and Action Programme (WRAP). Closing date for tenders - 22 January 2007 More...Select Committee holds follow up inquiry on radioactive waste managment (10/01/2007)
The House of Lords Science and Technology Select Committee is to hold a follow up inquiry into radioactive waste management. More...SEPA publishes 2004 waste data (08/01/2007)
SEPA has published its sixth annual Waste Data Digest for the 2004. Though this information is historic, SEPA makes a well presented report on overall waste management in Scotland for 2004 and is to be commended on the comprehensive nature of the report. More...Is poor waste management fuelling the rise of rats? (08/01/2007)
On Friday last, the Daily Mail picked up on a report by the National Pest Technicians Association (NPTA) on the growing rat population across the country, in an article headed 'Council greed fuelling rise of rats'. More...LGA wages War on Waste (08/01/2007)
The Local Government Association has launched its War on Waste campaign, as new figures are published that show that the UK is depositing more waste into landfill than other European countries. More...USB port batteries charged with saving waste. (05/01/2007)
Moixa Energy has been selected as a finalist for the best consumer product in the prestigious Design Week awards in February. Moixa's USBCeLL is part of a wider low-energy strategy developed to address issues in home device power. More...Bolton biodiesel cooperative runner-up for national honour (04/01/2007)
Bolton Alternative Fuels Cooperative (BAFC) was commended at the Energy Saving Trust Fleet Hero awards. The cooperative turns cooking oil into a usable fuel. More...New modular container for near-entrance recycling (03/01/2007)
A new, versatile, multi-material container has been introduce that caters for near-entrance and communal areas. It should be particularly suitable for multi-occupancy accommodation. More...The case for recycled PET in packaging (03/01/2007)
The business case for using recycled PET plastic in packaging will be demonstrated at a WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme) conference being held on 6th February 2007 in London. More...ELV Regulations implemented from 1 January 2007 (02/01/2007)
The End of Life Vehicle Regulations are implemented from 1 January. The regulations give car owners an entitlement to have their old (End of Life Vehicles or ELVs) vehicles taken off them free of charge known as "free take back". More...Berryman Glass and Hackney work with the Savoy in glass recycling (02/01/2007)
Working in partnership with Berryman Glass and the Commercial Waste Glass Service of The London Borough of Hackney, glass from the Savoy is now being recycled. More...Veolia pledge money for Xmas tree recycling (22/12/2006)
Recycle your Christmas Tree for Charity More...Watch your "wasteline" use the 3Rs this Christmas (22/12/2006)
Christmas advice from DEFRA and Recycle Now: More...Compostable car doors soon (21/12/2006)
The UK is on its way to developing car doors, boat hulls and baby capsules manufactured from super-strong, light-weight plastic made from plant products, which harmlessly biodegrades at the end of its life according to the DTI. More...Veolia almost there with East Sussex composting facility (21/12/2006)
Construction and operation of an enclosed composting facility including ancillary infrastructure, visitor centre and woodchipping facility More...News Bites (19/12/2006)
Quarter 3 - Revised reprocessor and exporter figures for packaging wastes. Amazon is having a not-so-merry Irish Christmas More...Timber assurance schemes pass Government test (19/12/2006)
Five schemes designed to combat illegal logging and protect forests worldwide have been given the Government seal of approval after a review to check their continuing effectiveness. More...Environment Agency continue clampdown on non-complying packaging waste producers (19/12/2006)
The Environment Agency has recently publicised a further two prosecutions in relation to the failure of producers to meet their obligations under the packaging waste regulations. More...Sims to expand Newport plant with £8m facility for WEEE (18/12/2006)
Sims Recycling Solutions, a division of the Sims Group, has announced that it is installing new processing capacity at its Newport, South Wales plant to treat and recycle Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE). More...News Bites (15/12/2006)
Beware of bogus refuse collectors; In the Commons - Biomass; In the Commons - In-vessel Composting; Dismantling of UK ships in South Asia contravenes ban on haz waste exports? More...One billion Christmas cards end up in rubbish bins! (15/12/2006)
Waste Watch recently estimated that up to 1 billion Christmas cards could end up in rubbish bins across the UK rather than being recycled More...Say "no" to Christmas excess? (14/12/2006)
If you’re in the business of festive food and drink, you’d better watch out for the Womens' Institute (WI) this Yuletide season. More...Envirowise "box clever" (13/12/2006)
Companies across the UK are being urged to 'box clever' with packaging design under an Envirowise initiative. More...Six million tonnes of food go to waste! (13/12/2006)
Funding is being made available by WRAP to help reduce the six million tonnes of household food thrown away each year (closing date 21 March 2007) More...New WEEE Regulations laid before Parliament (12/12/2006)
Producers of electrical, and electronic equipment (EEE) will from July 2007 be required to meet the environmental costs of dealing with waste products under new regulations published today. More...One51 increases holding in Augean to nearly 27% (11/12/2006)
One51 has bought a further 3.6% stake in UK waste company Augean, bringing its holding to nearly 27%. More...NFU Scotland claims victory in composting waste exemptions (08/12/2006)
NFU Scotland has secured an important win in relation to biobed and composting regulations within the Waste Management Licensing system. More...Innovative packaging funding opportunity (07/12/2006)
Innovative schemes to reduce household packaging waste could benefit from financial assistance from WRAP (closing date 31 January 2007). More...Pink RCV signage tackles fly-tipping in Derby (06/12/2006)
Yesterday, two Council waste vehicles were unveiled in Derby to warn residents of the consequences of fly-tipping More...Trials offer New solution for heavily contaminated plastics (05/12/2006)
Trials are currently taking place into processing plastics which are heavily contaminated with blood, meat, fat and other food stuffs. More...PIC rebut finding of 'A Zero Waste UK' on disposable cameras (29/11/2006)
The report, ‘A Zero Waste UK’ from the Institute for Public Policy Research and Green Alliance, targeted disposable products such as certain cameras as items that should be subjected to a tax to discourage their use. The Photo Imaging Council refutes this proposal as it considers that disposable cameras in fact represent "a true recycling success story". More...UNEP Nairobi conference addresses electronic waste (28/11/2006)
Nairobi Conference on Basel Convention to Address the Growing Challenge of Electronic Wastes More...Scarborough approach on green wastes makes sense (27/11/2006)
In further development of the Scarborough recycling service the council is to issue wheeled bins to its residents, but with a small financial input required from them. The bins are to be issued to those people already on kerbside collection rounds. More...Devon gets hot on energy from waste (24/11/2006)
A report, to be considered by the Devon County Council Executive, proposes that a modern energy from waste (efw) combined heat and power (CHP) plant for Exeter should be built to divert waste away from landfill. More...Hartlepool company fined £10,000 for waste tyre offences (24/11/2006)
A Hartlepool recycling depot was fined £10,000 this week after pleading guilty to four tyre waste offences. More...Hampshire to crack down on £1m trade waste abuse at HWRCs (23/11/2006)
The Hampshire County Council's Cabinet has approved measures to tackle trade waste abuse at HWRCs which it has been estimated could cost council tax payers £1m by 2008. More...CKS to open a new WEEE recycling facility (22/11/2006)
CKS has said that it is to offer a high security disk shredding and WEEE compliant recycling service through the development of a new site in the south of the UK to be operated by CKS Electronics Recycling. More...Call to construction industry for 50% cut in landfill use by 2012 (22/11/2006)
A call has been made to the construction industry to achieve a 50% cut in materials waste going to landfill by the year 2012. This call was made by The Sustainability Forum, together with WRAP (the Waste & Resources Action Programme). More...Unhappy BPF seeks Bradshaw and meets Cameron- Part 2 (21/11/2006)
Cameron signals importance of plastics to manufacturing. More...Unhappy BPF seeks Bradshaw and meets Cameron- Part 1 (21/11/2006)
The British Plastics Federation (BPF) has requested a meeting with the Environment Minister Ben Bradshaw following remarks he made to the media about excessive supermarket packaging. More...WRAP to host workshops on its construction web site re-development (17/11/2006)
Design Workshop (28 November) Construction Workshop (29 November) Supply Chain Workshop (12 and 14 December) More...Government presses supermarkets on packaging and food waste (15/11/2006)
Large retailers, including supermarkets, are being encouraged to play a major role in the reduction of environmental effects of their produce. More...Council chiefs warn retailers to stump up more WEEE funding (14/11/2006)
According to the LGA, television mountains could become the new fridge mountains unless businesses stump up the money required to collect WEEE. More...Firm fined for using untreated waste in community woodland planting project (08/11/2006)
A company pleaded guilty today at Ayr Sheriff Court to disposing of untreated waste between May and October 2004. More...Wastes and recycling prominent in new minerals planning guidance (08/11/2006)
A new framework setting out the Government's key policies and principles for minerals planning in England has been published. It aims to balance the needs of the UK's minerals industry against the need to safeguard environment and society. More...Biffa's Soil Clinic wins national award (07/11/2006)
A 'Soil Clinic' operated by Biffa has won the award for "Best use of biological systems" at the, annual Brownfield Briefing Remediation Innovation Awards (BBRIA) 2006. More...Logistics problems looming in recycling container export (06/11/2006)
Changes are coming in container transport which have implications for the recycling export sector of the waste management industry. They essentially relate to economies of scale with huge container ships travelling to ports across the world. More...CCTV captures litter louts in Peterborough campaign (06/11/2006)
Peterborough City Council continues its crack-down on anti-social behaviour by publishing images of people suspected of dropping litter so that the public can help identify them. More...FOE demand plastic recycling facilities in Coventry (02/11/2006)
Friends of the Earth, Coventry have handed a 700 signature petition to Cllr David Nellist at the council offices entrance. More...Warwickshire waste compositional survey underway (02/11/2006)
Warwickshire Waste Partnership is carrying out waste composition analyses to see how much of household waste produced in the County could have been recycled. More...Battery recycling scheme expanded by WRAP (01/11/2006)
Research undertaken by WRAP shows that the average household uses 21 batteries per year and that around 600m UK batteries are sent to landfill every year. More...Power tools firm fails to recycle packaging waste (30/10/2006)
An international power tool company has been fined a total of £12,000 and ordered to pay £1,257 costs for failing to recover and recycle packaging waste More...WRAP case study site, Battersea Reach, nominated for national award (27/10/2006)
Battersea Reach was nominated for best sustainability innovation for waste recycling and tidal planting, at the annual awards organised by LABC - the national organisation for building control services. More...Bury roll out "chipped" wheeled bins (27/10/2006)
Bury MBC have rolled out blue wheeled bins containing microchips, to around 6,500 residents. More...Bucks gets tough at HWRCs (26/10/2006)
Buckinghamshire County Council have introduced a new permit scheme that will be required for commercial vehicles, people on foot, or those with large trailers. More...Plastics regranulates selling hotly in Germany (25/10/2006)
Plastics recycling with the German Green Dot scheme is proving to be a success story according to Stefan Schreiter, CEO of Duales System Deutschland GmbH (DSD). More...Sims acquire German WEEE recycling company (23/10/2006)
Sims Recycling Solutions, the e-recycling Division of Sims Group has expanded in Europe with the acquisition of Metall+ Recycling GmbH (M+R), a specialist German Recycling company. More...Skip operator fined for illegal tyre treatment (news in brief) (23/10/2006)
The court heard that Mr Clements is a senior partner of Clembins Skip Hire, which is run from his land at Pitchkettle Farm. More...Agency goes veggie with fuel. (23/10/2006)
Recycled vegetable oil is being harnessed in a two-year biodiesel trial announced today, that will see 100 Environment Agency vehicles reducing their emissions by 20%. More...Tata's £4.3bn takeover bid accepted by Corus (22/10/2006)
Tata Steel has had its £4.3bn ($8.1bn) takeover offer accepted by Corus. This is thought to be the largest ever takeover by an Indian company. If approved by shareholders, this will become the worlds 5th largest steel company. More...Scottish company to recycle large quantities of aggregates (news in brief) (20/10/2006)
Taking advantage of its quayside location, the Malcolm Group is to develop a new inert waste recycling facility at a disused shipyard in Glasgow. More...Capacity increase for lamp recycler (20/10/2006)
Addressing increasing demand for its services, Mercury Recycling has doubled its capacity at its Trafford Park, Manchester recycling plant. More...Axion trials mobile plastics shredder (news in brief) (19/10/2006)
Axion is trialling a mobile plastics shredder. The aim of the trial is to determine whether mobile plastic shredding can be both economically and technically viable. More...Highways Agency has magnetic attraction (19/10/2006)
A giant magnet attached to a new mechanical road sweeper is helping to keep major roads in the south east safe by collecting metal which has fallen from vehicles. More...The Edinburgh Furniture Initiative has won a major waste re-use award. (19/10/2006)
The EFI scooped the Best Community Waste Initiative award at the Scottish Waste Industry Awards. Its work includes the Edinburgh City Council recycling centres where re-usable household items are saved from going to landfill. More...Envirowise continue to minimise waste and reduce companies' environmental impact. (16/10/2006)
Launched in 1994 through Government funding, Envirowise has helped thousands of companies to cut waste and in the process improve their "bottom line". More...Able UK planning submissions for recycling of the "ghost" ships thrown out. (13/10/2006)
Hartlepool Council has overwhelmingly rejected all four applications from Able UK relating to the development of its Graythorp site on the outskirts of Hartlepool. More...British Plastics Federation urges Government action on energy (13/10/2006)
The British Plastics Federation (BPF) has repeated key points for the UK Government's consumption in its to pursuit of a sustainable energy policy. More...English WDAs meet LATS limits - provisionally (12/10/2006)
According to an interim statement from DEFRA, all waste disposal authorities in England have successfully met their LATS limits for the first year of the Landfill Allowances Trading Scheme. More...Woman waste paper importer tops China's rich list (news in brief) (11/10/2006)
Ms Zhang Yin, the founder of Nine Dragons Paper, has topped the list of China's richest people with a fortune amounting o $3.4 billion (£1.8 billion). She is the first woman to top the list More...Scrap dealer contravenes End-of-Life Vehicle Regs (09/10/2006)
A scrap yard owner has been ordered to pay £18,905 for failing to dispose of waste vehicles and vehicle parts properly and for running a site without the correct Waste Management Licence. More...One week only to WEEE consultation deadline (09/10/2006)
Readers are reminded that the recent consultation on the implementation of WEEE will come to a close on the 17 October 2006 (on Tuesday next). More...Battery Directive published in the Official Journal (news in brief) (05/10/2006)
DIRECTIVE 2006/66/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 6 September 2006 on batteries and accumulators and waste batteries and accumulators and repealing Directive 91/157/EEC OJ L266 Vol 49 26 September 2006 More...Europe's African dumping ground? (02/10/2006)
It looks from information given that the toxic waste recently "disposed of" in the Ivory Coast could be the tip of the ice-berg. More...Misunderstanding leads to a roasting (29/09/2006)
A misunderstanding of packaging regulations led to a company being fined a total of £4,000 and ordered to pay £940 costs. More...Success for innovative tyre treatment process (28/09/2006)
A revolutionary new recycling plant for tyre treatment has been unveiled. More...New Earth Solutions awarded 5 year Bournemouth contract (news in brief) (27/09/2006)
New Earth Solutions have been awarded a 5 year, £7.5 million contract from Bournemouth Council for treatment of residual waste More...Beacon councils pass on recycling expertise (27/09/2006)
Waste managers are meeting in Ely on Thursday to gain knowledge from Cambridgeshire and Peterborough councils on the art of recycling. More...Dramatic recycling increase in Waltham Forest pilot areas (26/09/2006)
Within a month of commencement of Waltham Forest’s Council’s Compulsory Recycling Scheme, and initial figures indicate a substantial recycling increase in the pilot areas. More...Packaging Federation publishes national report and criticises DTI (26/09/2006)
The Department of Trade and Industry has been criticised by the Packaging Federation as it publishes its state-of-the-nation UK Market Report.