After delays due to additional assessments being conducted, Defra has published the waste management plan for England, bringing together existing waste management policies under one banner.
A consultation on the plan will determine whether it meets EU requirements set out in Article 28 of the Waste Framework Directive, which requires EU member states to analyse their waste management position and their processes of waste reuse, recycling, recovery and disposal.
Defra confirmed that the draft plan, published alongside an environmental impact assessment, echoes the 2011 government waste policy review and claims that the plan will not place any additional burdens on businesses, consumers or local authorities.
Defra’s policy lead for waste infrastructure, Haroona Chughtai, said: “Local waste authorities must … have regard to the plan when producing local waste plans that establish how they will manage waste within their areas.”
According to Defra, England generates about 228 million tonnes of waste each year. The recent updates are all part of a national waste prevention programme helping households and business save money by reducing waste, and in turn reduce our impact on the environment.
Director of policy at the Environmental Services Association, Matthew Farrow, said: “Defra had made clear that the plan was intended to ensure compliance with the Waste Framework Directive rather than to break new policy ground.
“There is, however, a separate debate about whether Defra should be more ambitious in terms of exceeding the Waste Framework Directive targets and identifying where it can do more to enable business to build a circular economy.”
