Waste management industry to develop new spending plan

For the first time ever, stakeholders in the waste management industry are being asked to assist with the development of a new £200 million spending plan designed to aid sustainable waste management.


The programme is being funded by the Landfill Tax Credit Scheme (LTCS) which was introduced in 1996, and allows landfill operators to redirect 20% of their landfill tax liability to approved environmental projects designed to encourage more sustainable waste management practices, including recycling, and to deliver lasting environmental and community benefits. Over the next three years, it is expected that around £200 million will be invested in sustainable waste management projects.

However, in order to ensure that the money is spent in the best way possible, the Forum for Waste and Resources Research and Development (FORWARRD), an independent organisation established to provide a national focus for waste related research, is looking for waste management stakeholders to put together a guidance document. The organisation is looking for tenders for the work from any organisation that feels that it has the ability to carry it out. These could be a university, consultancy company, or representatives from the waste management industry, FORWARRD Project Manager Mike Head told edie.

The resulting document is intended to act as guidance for the very diverse industry, rather than being directly prescriptive, said Head. Due to its diversity, “in the end, there won’t be complete agreement on all priorities”, he said. The document will then be sent out to sustainable waste management stakeholders for consultation.

The document will aim to encourage all participants in the scheme to focus their projects on those areas that will provide maximum momentum and knowledge to aid the changes that are urgently needed to reduce waste and to increase recycled product markets. “Government has recently set out its expectations for the future achievements of the LTCS,” said Head. “We are confident of delivering an industry-led response that meets those expectations and provides effective guidance to participants to maximise the benefits of those investments.”

In the past, waste management programmes have been compiled by government departments, but this will be the first to be formulated through consultation directly with industry, explained Head.

Tender packs are available from Mike Head until 9 November by emailing mhead@trl.co.uk.

Since the LTCS was introduced, over £400 million from the scheme has been invested in such projects, with over £50 million of that money being distributed to 1,200 environmental bodies in the first four months of this year.

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