Recycling and composting rates for areas of England

Defra published detailed recycling and composting rates for every local authority in the country during 2004/05 on January 23 2006.

East of England leads way
Amongst the regions of England, the East of England leads the way, with residents in St Edmundsbury (50.6%), Forest Heath (48.6%) and South Cambridgeshire (46.8%) helping the region recycle and compost nearly 30% (29.8%) of its waste. The latest figure for England as a whole is 22.9% up 4.7% from the figure of 18.2% for the previous year. The East Midlands isthe most improved region, up 7% to 27%.

Further information about local authority recycling and composting rates is available via the Defra website

Forthcoming consultation on Waste Strategy
The Government intends to publish an authoritative revised waste strategy for England in the autumn, setting out Government’s vision and strategic direction on waste for the next 20 years, as well as the policies and actions to deliver the revised strategy. A consultation document on the waste strategy review will be published in the next few weeks (early 2006).

More information on the strategy review is available via the Defra website

Comment
Friends of the Earth wants to see new ambitious national recycling targets of at least 50 per cent by 2010 and 75 per cent by 2015. The environmental campaign group also wants assurances that expensive, inefficient and polluting incineration plants will not be promoted as part of the waste strategy, when recycling is a better for the environment and is a more cost effective way of dealing with waste.

References
 * Defra news relase
 * FoE press release - Recycling rates increasing - but fifty per cent is just the start, January 23 2006