Ministers to unveil waste plans
February 14, 2006
The government is to launch a review of how to tackle the growing problem of waste in England and Wales.
Environmentalists fear plans to incinerate more waste will be among the possible measures, setting back efforts to increase recycling rates.
In January, the BBC reported that ministers backed the idea of burning up to 25% of municipal waste in an attempt to ease pressure on landfill sites.
The government is expected to publish its updated strategy in the summer.
Local environment minister Ben Bradshaw will outline the review's key proposals on Tuesday morning, and launch a 12-week public consultation period.
Reducing waste
Mr Bradshaw is also expected to unveil new targets for recycling and how the strategy aims to reduce the amount of waste generated by homes and businesses.
Last month, the BBC saw documents that showed officials appeared to favour increasing "energy from waste", a process in which incinerators are used to power electricity generation plants.
Environmental groups rejected the idea that refuse can provide green energy, calling it a "myth". Friends of the Earth said more effort had to be focused on increasing recycling rates.
"Recycling saves more energy than is created by burning waste," said campaigner Anna Watson.
"Once built, incinerators lock councils in to supplying them with large amounts of waste that could be better recycled or composted."
The group also said burning rubbish increased the risk of local residents being exposed to dioxins - chemicals that are suspected of causing cancer.
The Industry Council for Packaging and the Environment (INCPEN) said energy from waste had to play a role in the government's long term waste management strategy.
"Our cleaner, greener European neighbours have long understood that energy from waste is sensible," said INCPEN director Jan Bickerstaffe.
"Denmark incinerates 58% of its waste, compared to 9% in the UK.
"According to the Environment Agency, more dioxins were emitted in one hour by the millennium fireworks than will be produced by all of the UK's incinerators in 120 years."
In 2000, the government published its White Paper, which set out its 20-year vision of how it planned to tackle the growing problem of waste. The Waste 2000 strategy set the target of recycling or composting at least 30% of household waste by 2010.
In 2003/04, about 19% of municipal waste in England and Wales was either recycled or composted, but 72% still ended up in landfill sites.
The review's public consultation period will close in May, and the government is expected to publish its findings in the summer.
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