£90m Landfill Tax pays for green business support

Ben Bradshaw, Minister for Local Environmental Quality Services, announced the latest wave of grants under Defra’s Business Resource Efficiency and Waste programme this week.

The package, the second year’s worth of funding under the programme, will see an additional £95 million invested in organisations that can help businesses cut waste, shift waste from landfill and improve their efficiency.

The money will fund a range of free services and targeted support for businesses of all sizes and sector: from large quoted companies to smaller enterprises.

“Waste is about more than recycling – it links into the big issues about how much this country is producing and consuming,” said Bradshaw.

“Although we all want to continue to enjoy the benefits of a modern society, the impacts of our everyday consumption patterns on the environment remain severe. The inefficient use of resources can also affect business competitiveness – including small businesses.

“Many businesses simply do not realise that they can expect to save around 5% of their turnover by cutting waste, often with little or no investment.

“Add on top of that savings through improved resource efficiency, whether that be water use, energy use or the use of virgin materials, then we are talking about a substantial amount of money out there to be saved.

“The Landfill Tax therefore shouldn’t be seen as a burden, but as an opportunity for businesses to really get to grips with some of their key environmental impacts while providing a welcome boost to profits.”

The cash is to be shared between 11 organisations in the next financial year.