During the last year 30 landfill sites have closed in the UK, taking the number of closures to 130 since 2008, according to a new report.
Although another eight landfill sites have either opened or re-opened in the last year, there has been a further drop in the amount of waste being sent to landfill, the report has found.
This was attributed in part to the impact of the recession as well as local authorities grappling to pay increasing landfill tax, which rose by £8 to £64 per tonne in April 2012 and is set to rise to£72 a tonne from April 2013.
Also people and companies are now much more aware about recycling and its importance. As a result, the study notes that some landfill sites have completed their void and planning has not been allowed for an extension or the site has come to the end of its natural life.
The development of alternative waste facilities, such as energy-from-waste and mechanical biological treatment plants, it also diverting waste from landfill, the study found.
The annual report, ‘Estimates waste volumes deposited at landfill sites in Great Britain’, was published this week Bath-based BDS Marketing Research Ltd. It lists all known open gate landfill sites operated by waste management companies in Great Britain and the estimated waste inputs for each of these sites.
This report highlights why some of the big landfill operators are struggling and in our new Eco world their will be some casualties along the way. I am sure as recycling continues to grow the need for landfills will fall, this is all good news.