UK must recycle 65pc of rubbish but failing countries ‘let off the hook’ by EU
This is a big issue for local authorities, particularly those in rural areas where distance makes things more expensive. The article tells us:
UK households will be forced to recycle two-thirds of their rubbish while countries that recycle the least will be “let off the hook” with easier targets, under European Commission proposals.
The Government said it was “seriously concerned” about the EC’s plans, unveiled on Wednesday, to impose a legally-binding target on most EU member states of recycling 65 per cent of all household waste by 2030.
Critics say hitting the target could be extremely costly and burdensome for families and businesses alike, and could result in councils fining households that fail to recycle or issuing smaller dustbins to physically limit black bag waste.
Ministers are also understood to be worried about the EC’s proposal to let the seven EU member states that currently have the lowest recycling rates – Estonia, Greece, Croatia, Latvia, Malta, Romania and Slovakia – get away with lower targets.
They fear the plan effectively penalises the UK and other countries that have made more effort to hit the existing legally-binding target of recycling 50 per cent of waste by 2020.
The UK recycled 44 per cent of its waste in 2013 but is still in danger of missing the 2020 target, leaving it open to fines.
The seven worst-performing countries in the EU all recycled less than 20 per cent of their waste in 2013, with Romania on just 3 per cent. They will only have to recycle 60 per cent of their waste by 2030, under the plans.