Council rubbish costs to rise by over £1bnCouncils fear rise could affect frontline services
15 October 2009
The cost of collecting and disposing of the nation's rubbish is set to rise by £1.1bn by 2013 and could affect other frontline council services, the Local Government Association (LGA) has warned.
The increasing cost of waste management - estimated to go up from £3.1bn in 2009 to £4.2bn in 2013 - is due to a combination of rising taxes for throwing rubbish in the ground, known as landfill tax, and tougher waste rules.
And with councils facing EU fines if they fail to meet targets in 2013 for cutting waste sent to landfill, the LGA is urging the government to take urgent action - or council taxpayers could be left 'with a huge bill to pay'.
Find out more about what happens to your rubbish as well as how to recycle old products using our new online recycling tool. Plus we've got all the recycling basics covered in our essential guide to recycling.
'Ever increasing bill'
According to Cllr Gary Porter, chairman of the LGA Environment Board: 'Councils face an ever increasing bill for getting rid of the nation’s rubbish. By going back on its undertaking to refund to councils the money raised through landfill tax, at current rates, the government will hit councils with an estimated £620m bill this year alone.'
The LGA is calling for the money from landfill tax to be invested in new technology that would enable councils to meet waste and recycling targets, including energy from waste plants and industrial scale composting.
Zero waste
The warning came as environment secretary Hilary Benn laid out his plans for a 'zero waste nation', including a commitment to halve the amount of waste going to landfill in England in the next 10 years, and an aim to ban certain recyclable materials from being sent to landfill in future.
Mr Benn said: 'In ten years time 75% of household waste will either be recycled or used for energy, and over time this figure will increase even further. Aiming for zero waste is the way we have to think to get us to where we need to be.'
Which?'s greener living section has more on recycling - including an online tool to help you recycle old products, a guide that reveals what happens to your rubbish, and a video guide to improving your recycling habits.
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