The whole quantity of family waste generated in Scotland in 2023 was 2.3 million tonnes, a drop of 1.1% from 2022, in keeping with Scottish Surroundings Safety Company (SEPA) statistics printed on 29 October.
That is additionally the bottom quantity of family waste generated for the reason that begin of the present recording interval in 2011. Of this, 43.5% was recycled, a 0.2% enhance from 2022.
Scottish family waste landfilled in 2023 was 409,000 tonnes, a lower of 177,000 tonnes (30.2%) from 2022, persevering with a long-standing downward development, in SEPA’s evaluation, with a 71.9% discount in family waste landfilled since 2011.
The quantity of family waste managed by different means (diverted from landfill) was 894,000 tonnes, a 21.6% enhance on 2022. Most of this was managed by incineration (746,000 tonnes, 83.5%).
The whole amount of waste landfilled in Scotland in 2023 was 2.0 million tonnes, a lower of 14.8% from 2022. This continues a long-term development, with a discount of 5.1 million tonnes since 2005, and is the bottom annual quantity on document of waste landfilled since then.
A lot of the lower was attributable to a discount in family and related waste and soils. The discount in family and related wastes comes because the waste administration sector is making ready for the 2025 ban of biodegradable municipal waste to landfill.
The whole amount of waste incinerated in Scotland in 2023 was 1.62 million tonnes, a rise of 15.4% from 2022. Family and related wastes represented 33.8% of the overall waste incinerated in Scotland.
Over one third of waste incinerated was in amenities that utilized for and had been accredited with the R1 power effectivity standards, a certification utilized to waste amenities that primarily use waste as a gasoline for producing power, making certain that the incineration course of is assessed as restoration quite than disposal. R1-certified amenities obtain particular power effectivity ranges, making waste incineration a putatively sustainable choice by maximizing power output relative to the waste used.
Carbon impression of Scottish family waste
The Scottish carbon metric quantifies the whole-life impression of assets. A measure of nationwide efficiency, the metric makes an attempt to take a holistic view, spanning useful resource extraction and manufacturing emissions, by means of to waste administration emissions. That is measured in carbon dioxide equal (CO2e).
The carbon impression of Scottish family waste generated and managed in 2023 was 5.4 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equal (CO2e), which equates to 0.98 tonnes of CO2e per individual.
This was a lower of three.2% from 2022 and represents the bottom carbon impression of family waste generated and managed since reporting started in 2011 with the introduction of the Scottish Authorities’s Zero Waste Plan.
Round Economic system (Scotland) Act 2024
The Scottish Authorities’s Round Economic system Act, which acquired Royal Assent in August 2024, establishes the legislative framework to assist Scotland’s transition to a zero waste and round economic system, with the chance that it’ll considerably enhance reuse and recycling charges, and modernise and enhance waste and recycling companies.
The draft route map proposes coverage initiatives with a particular deal with delivering a system-wide round economic system throughout Scotland, accelerating sustainable use of assets and decreasing emissions related to waste and assets, and might be printed later this 12 months.
“Scotland has ambitions for a circular economy where more of the materials produced and consumed in Scotland are re-used, recycled and remanufactured in Scotland, creating a range of environmental, economic and societal benefits,” says SEPA,
Jo Zwitserlood, Head of Vitality, Business and Supplies at SEPA, commented:”We’ve all bought a task to play – the consumption of merchandise and use of supplies touches on each one in every of us. We’re making constructive steps in direction of reducing the carbon impression of Scotland’s family waste and seeing decrease quantities of waste generated and disposed of to landfill, which is essential to addressing the environmental impression of waste administration.
“At SEPA we continue to play our part in helping Scotland transition to a circular economy, working collaboratively with Scottish Government, Zero Waste Scotland, Scottish Councils, and Scotland’s reprocessing and waste management sector.”
Iain Gulland, Chief Government at Zero Waste Scotland, stated: “After we all work collectively we are able to make an actual distinction, so it’s extraordinarily welcome to see the efforts of individuals at dwelling mirrored in SEPA’s newest knowledge – with family waste at its lowest stage in over a decade and recycling charges persevering with to climb.
“Waste reduction and recycling are integral to Scotland’s circular economy vision, and the latest data shows we’re making great progress. Let’s keep that momentum going and strive towards a more sustainable future for Scotland we can all be proud of.”
