27 September 2011

Wales is recycling and composting almost half its waste
Wales is recycling and composting almost half its waste, figures released by the Welsh Government have revealed.

Preliminary statistics released today show a four percent increase on the same period - April to June - in 2010.

But on an individual local authority basis, Neath Port Talbot Council is the only council in Wales to recycle less, compared with the previous period last year, dropping from 45.2% to 39.9%.

A spokeswoman for the authority said: "Quarterly measurement of performance indicatorsonly provides a snapshot of performance and does not take into consideration fluctuations in tonnage data that occurr during the course of the year.

"The reason the council's performance in dry recycling and composting is down compared to many other councils relates principally to a difference in the quantity of bio-waste composted or biologically treated.

"Ultimately the council can only collect and compost the green waste that householders put out.

"The council is anticipating an increase in its performance in 2011/2012 as its food waste collection service is rolled out across the county borough."

Local Authority Municipal Waste Management, April - June 2011 also shows that the residual household waste produced per person in Wales has continued to decrease, from 70 kilograms per person in April - June 2010 to 62 kilograms per person in April - June 2011.

Welsh Government Environment Minister John Griffiths said: These figures show a clear increase on our recycling performance and prove we are well on the way to reaching our first statutory recycling target of 52 per cent in 2012 2013.

Most Welsh local authorities have significantly improved their performance over recent years.

High recycling is an important element of sustainable waste management, but it is not the whole picture. We cannot afford to be complacent.

If we are to meet the ambitions set out in our waste strategy, Towards Zero Waste we must continue to do everything we can to prevent waste wherever possible and to become a more resource-efficient society. We must also accept that we need alternatives to landfill for waste which we cannot recycle.

Wales is the only country in the UK to introduce statutory targets for municipal recycling. The first statutory target for local authorities is 52 per cent for 2012 2013

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