The outcome of two important research studies into the waste infrastructure in the United Kingdom highlighted a familiar theme this week – even though they were nearly six months apart.
Both recent reports identify that an improvement in the capture and utilisation of data, particularly for commercial and industrial waste arisings, is crucial to provide the evidence for the development for future waste infrastructure. This has been an important factor for the past decade or more.
I can remember contributing to the Waste Plans for the Greater London area and the wider South-East of England Plans from the late 1980s until 2000. The same problems of capture of good, clean data sets beset myself and colleagues especially for non-hazardous wastes. Hazardous Waste has, always, been a special case with the regulatory focus on enhanced monitoring of such waste movements due to public concerns of the dumping of hazardous waste dating from the early 1970s.
The latest research report: ‘Mind the Gap: UK residual infrastructure capacity requirements, 2015 to 2025’ published by the waste management business, SITA includes five key recommendations including, data, increasing recycling rates and ensuring quality.
Additionally, the CIWM (Chartered Institution for Wastes Management) sponsored report: ‘Commercial and Industrial Waste in the UK and Republic of Ireland’ published in October last year (2013) supported similar findings as well as a call for an integration of energy recovery from waste into the UK’s spatial plans for energy delivery and incentives to utilise the heat from thermal treatment of residual waste.”
For further information, copies of the latest SITA report ‘Mind the Gap: UK residual infrastructure capacity requirements, 2015 to 2025′ can be found at http://bit.ly/1kbPejC and the earlier CIWM report: and Industrial Waste in the UK and Republic of Ireland’ can be found at http://bit.ly/1iutQc4