West Midlands Fire Service (WMFS) is urging residents in Birmingham to take extra care when storing and disposing of waste as Unite members vote to extend strike action.
Unite the Union said the dispute is over Birmingham City Council’s decision to “downgrade” Waste Recycling and Collection Officer (WRCO) roles.
On average, Unite said staff performing the “safety-critical” WRCO role will lose around £8,000 a year under the plans.
Birmingham City Council disputed Unite and said its whole team is accountable for working in a safe and responsible way.
An official in the Council told Circular Online that claims that 150 people could lose £8,000 a year in pay are “incorrect”.
They said that the number of staff that could lose the maximum amount (just over £6,000) is 17 people and they will have “pay protection” for six months in line with council policy.
The only way this dispute will end is by halting the brutal and unnecessary attacks on our members’ pay.
A spokesperson for the Council said: “To the small number of workers whose wages are impacted ongoing by the changes to the service (of whom there are now only 40) we have already offered alternatives, including highly valuable LGV Driver Training for career progression and pay, and other roles in the council equivalent to their former roles.”
WMFS said the industrial action has led to rubbish piling up in some areas, increasing fire risks, particularly around high-rise buildings and care homes.
The Fire Service said it is working collaboratively with Birmingham City Council and that they are prioritising collections from these locations, including residents.
Unite accuses Council of using “unlawful labour”
The industrial action may now continue into the summer after nearly 400 workers voted to extend the strike over, what Unite called, Birmingham City Council’s use of temporary labour to “undermine” their industrial action.
Unite is calling on the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate, which is part of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, to take action against Birmingham City Council.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham accused the council of the “disgraceful use of unlawful labour” to try and break the strike.
“The only way this dispute will end is by halting the brutal and unnecessary attacks on our members’ pay,” Graham said.
A spokesperson for Birmingham City Council refuted the claim that agency workers have been carrying out work normally undertaken by striking workers.
“We continue to deploy the same number of agency workers on days of action as we would on any normal working days,” the spokesperson told Circular Online.
“The Council would rather not have to overly use agency staff, however, to maintain a service to residents, even when there isn’t a strike, we have to.”
The European Commission has classified shredded battery waste, also known as “black mass”, as hazardous waste as part of plans to increase the circular management of batteries and critical raw materials.
The Commission updated the List of Waste last week as part of their goal to keep batteries and their critical raw materials in the European economy for longer.
Black mass, lithium-based, nickel-based, and zinc-based waste batteries, and sodium sulphur and alkaline waste batteries are now classed as hazardous.
The European List of Waste provides common terminology for identifying and classifying all different types of waste, including hazardous waste, which can be harmful to human health and the environment.
Access to shredded battery waste is essential for electric vehicle battery recycling. The Commission said the change will “pave the way” for a more sustainable automotive sector.
In accordance with the Basel Convention and the Waste Shipments Regulation, the Commission also said the change will allow them to better control shipments of black mass and ensure that black mass remains in the European economy.
The change is part of the battery regulation’s objective of shifting to a circular economy, increasing security of supply for raw materials and energy, and enhancing the EU’s strategic autonomy.
By keeping black mass longer in the economy we can boost battery recycling and our circular economy.
Commenting on the change, Jessika Roswall, Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy, said: “To better protect the environment, the Commission will now classify black mass from batteries as hazardous waste.
“This will lead to better control of black mass shipments and especially a ban on its export to non-OECD countries.
“By keeping black mass longer in the economy we can boost battery recycling and our circular economy.”
New specific waste codes have also been introduced to identify and support the proper management of waste from different stages of the batteries’ life cycle.
These include waste from battery manufacturing, waste from post-consumer batteries, and intermediate fractions from battery recycling.
A new hazardous code for lithium-based batteries for separately collected municipal waste has also been added.
The amendment of the List of Waste will enter into force 20 days after its publication in the Official Journal of the EU if the European Parliament or the Council of the EU do not object to it.
The amendment also aims to improve protections for the environment and human health by ensuring the proper management of battery-related waste.
Three defendants have been ordered to pay fines, victim surcharges and prosecution costs of more than £75,000 for their involvement in an illegal waste site in Northamptonshire.
The defendants were sentenced on 27 February at Northampton Magistrates’ Court for waste offences at Mill Farm near Kettering.
The Environment Agency said 34,000 tonnes of waste was stored at the site with large quantities of mixed waste piled over 10 metres high.
The Environment Agency said officers investigated the site in Great Cransley that David Goodjohn, 64, and his company, Green Infrastructure Ltd, operated without an environmental permit. They have been ordered to pay almost £32,000.
We take illegal waste activity very seriously and will not hesitate to disrupt activity and prosecute those responsible.
The third defendant, Storefield Aggregates, failed to comply with the waste duty of care by sending more than 24,000 tonnes of waste to the site between 2019 and 2021. It was ordered to pay more than £43,000.
Environment Agency Manager Yvonne Daly said: “We work to stop illegal waste activities and support legitimate business whilst protecting communities and nature from harm.
“We take illegal waste activity very seriously and will not hesitate to disrupt activity and prosecute those responsible.”
The Environment Agency sent warning letters to two other companies which also deposited waste at the site.
Staffordshire woman prosecuted for not removing illegal waste
Lissa Appleby pleaded guilty to a single offence of failing to remove illegal waste and fined £550 and also ordered to pay a victim’s surcharge of £220 at Cannock Magistrates Court.
The court was told that officers from the Environment Agency visited the address she was renting at Mill Farm, Cappers Lane, Whittington, Lichfield on October 13, 2023.
The address consisted of a domestic property, large grounds and a barn. The Environment Agency said several hundred tonnes of dry shredded waste was discovered inside the barn, containing plastic sheeting, plastic textiles, metals, wood and cardboard.
Appleby was given guidance that an environmental permit would be required for the activities carried out or for the waste to be removed by a person who held the correct waste carriers’ licence.
The Environment Agency issued a letter to immediately cease activities at the property, believing Appleby was operating an illegal waste site.
A spokesperson for the Environment Agency commented: “This site posed a significant environmental threat due to the high risk of fire and potential impact to local communities and amenities.”
Karen Graley has been appointed as the Head of the Producer Responsibility Organisation (PRO) for packaging Extended Producer Responsibility (pEPR).
The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) and the Industry Council for Packaging and the Environment (INCPEN) announced the appointment.
Graley has 30 years of experience working on packaging strategies across major UK retailers, including Safeway and Waitrose, and most recently in her role as Head of Packaging at Marks and Spencer.
Graley is also a founding member of the Board of Directors for the On-Pack Recycling Label (OPRL) scheme.
Karen Graley, the Head of the Producer Responsibility Organisation for packaging Extended Producer Responsibility.
Reacting to her appointment, Karen Graley said: “I am truly honoured to be appointed as the Head of the PRO at this pivotal moment for the future of the UK’s recycling system.
“The PRO’s success hinges on collaboration between producers, industry stakeholders, local authorities, and the wider community.
“I look forward to working together with all these partners to drive collaboration so we can achieve the shared goals of improving recyclability and ensuring resources are used efficiently and effectively.”
Graley sits on the EPR Interim Steering Group, which was created to support the mobilisation of the scheme and the formation of the scheme’s administrator, PackUK. She was also previously on the Government’s Advisory Committee for Packaging.
The PRO is being established by packaging producers across all the sectors covered by EPR, led by FDF and the INCPEN, to ensure that the fees raised by producers contribute to an increase in recycling rates.
The organisation will act on behalf of producers to represent their views in the scheme, support local authorities, and attract investment into recycling infrastructure.
As Head of the PRO, Graley will work with PackUK and key stakeholders across the UK’s four governments to set up the PRO and ensure it achieves its purpose of delivering a circular economy for packaging.
Paul Vanston, Chief Executive Officer of INCPEN and Chartered Member of the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management (CIWM), commented: “We welcome Karen to her new role with enthusiasm and warmth at an incredibly important time to establish the PRO on firm foundations with Pack UK and the four UK governments.”
“INCPEN and the FDF are serious in our intent to create a PRO that delivers the highest quality economic and environmental outcomes for the UK, for obligated producers and across the value chain.”
Construction begins on “UK’s first fully circular” tyre-to-fuel facility dedicated to the sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) value chain at the port of Sunderland.
Tyre-to-fuel business Wastefront said the new facility is the largest of its kind in Europe. The facility’s first commercial phase will start at the end of 2026, with the second phase launching a year later.
Once fully operational, Wastefront said the plant will process 10 million end-of-life tyres annually and convert them into tyre-derived oil for refining into SAF and other sustainable fuels.
Vianney Valès, CEO of Wastefront, commented: “Our circular process not only prevents millions of tyres from being discarded in landfills but also provides a scalable, cost-effective pathway for SAF production.
“This process will also reduce lifecycle emissions by more than 80% compared to fossil fuels. The Sunderland facility is just the beginning – we aim to expand rapidly to meet the growing demand for sustainable fuels.”
Our circular process not only prevents millions of tyres from being discarded in landfills but also provides a scalable, cost-effective pathway for SAF production.
The Sunderland facility utilises an advanced heating process without oxygen called pyrolysis technology to convert end-of-life tyres into tyre-derived oil, which will be refined into SAF.
Wastefront said its system is self-sustaining and recycles the gases generated during pyrolysis to power its operations.
By 2030, Wastefront aims to operate four large-scale plants, collectively producing 128,000 tonnes of oil annually, which it says will yield approximately 90,000 tonnes of SAF.
The groundbreaking ceremony was attended at the Port of Sunderland by MP for Sunderland Central Lewis Atkinson, leader of Sunderland City Council Cllr Michael Mordey, and Wastefront CEO Vianney Valès.
MP for Sunderland Central Lewis Atkinson said: “This £100 million investment by Wastefront is a huge vote of confidence in Sunderland, our workforce, and our region’s future as a leader in green innovation.
“The Port of Sunderland is rapidly becoming a hub for cutting-edge industry, and this project will create skilled jobs for local people while also securing our position at the forefront of the UK’s net-zero economy.”
A new Energy-from-Waste facility in Leeds has accepted the first delivery of unrecyclable waste as 200 tonnes arrive at the site.
enfinium, a leading UK Energy-from-Waste (EfW), said the Skelton Grange is important for the development of a circular economy and decarbonisation of unrecyclable waste for West Yorkshire and the wider region.
Once operational, enfinium said the facility will divert up to 410,000 tonnes of unrecyclable waste from landfill every year and generate up to 49MW of energy enough to power over 100,000 UK homes.
enfinium said the facility will divert up to 410,000 tonnes of unrecyclable waste from landfill every year.
Commenting on the delivery, Dan James, Plant Manager for Skelton Grange, said: “We are pleased that Skelton Grange has achieved this milestone as the project moves towards completion in 2025.
“EfW facilities play an incredibly important role in contributing to a circular economy and reducing emissions from the waste sector by diverting our unrecyclable waste from landfill.”
enfinium said the site’s construction created over 400 jobs and generated £500 million in investment and, once operational, the facility will create over 40 full-time roles.
In February 2025, the low carbon heating and electricity scheme Aire Valley Heat and Power Network in Leeds, which will utilise waste heat from enfinium’s Skelton Grange facility, was awarded £19.5 million in funding from the Government’s Green Heat Network Fund.
England’s recycling rate for “waste from households” fell by 0.7 percentage points to 43.4% in 2022 compared to 44.1% in 2021.
The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) released statistics on local authority collected waste management for 2022/23, showing a fall in recycling rates.
“Waste from households” is the official recycling measure used for reporting at a harmonised UK level.
Household waste is broader than “waste from households” as it includes waste from street bins, street sweepings, and parks and grounds – but it does not include metals from incinerator bottom ash.
In 2022, total “waste from households” decreased to 21.5 million tonnes from 23.1 million tonnes in 2021. Defra said this is equivalent to 377 kg per person, down from 409 kg per person.
The total amount of waste recycled decreased by 8.6% in 2022, falling from 10.2 million tonnes in 2021 to 9.3 million tonnes.
In 2022, the amount of dry material recycled was 5.5 million tonnes, a 7.1% decrease from 2021.
The amount of residual waste treated was 12.1 million tonnes, down from 12.9 million tonnes in 2021, a decrease of 6.0%.
The tonnage of separately collected food waste sent for recycling was 499 thousand tonnes, a decrease of 2.6% from 512 thousand tonnes in 2021.
How are local authorities managing waste?
49.1% of all local authority waste was sent to incineration.
Local authority-managed waste decreased by 6% to 24.5 million tonnes in 2022/23.
7.2% of all local authority waste (1.8 million tonnes) was disposed of via landfill in 2022/23. This was down by 0.3 million tonnes a decrease of 16% from 2021/22.
49.1% of all local authority waste was sent to incineration; however, waste sent for incineration decreased by 0.3 million tonnes (2.8%) to 12.1 million tonnes in 2022/23.
10.0 million tonnes of local authority waste was sent for recycling in 2022/23, a decrease of 0.8 million tonnes (7.7%) from 2021/22.
Amongst the 333 local authorities in England, Defra said there is considerable variation in “household waste” recycling rates, ranging from 17.7% to 61.6% in 2022/23.
Jane Cherrington, Director – Climate at Local Partnerships and Resource Conference Cymru 2025 Panel Moderator, dives into the challenges local authorities and private waste collectors will face when Energy-from-Waste joins the UK Emissions trading scheme in 2028.
At a CIWM event last year, a colleague described the UK emissions trading scheme (UK ETS) as a silent express train tearing towards us. Even after years of communication about the inclusion of energy from waste and incinerators in the trading scheme, it can certainly still feel that way.
To say UK ETS is a slow burn for the waste sector (no pun intended) could be an understatement.
The primary goal of the UK ETS is to reduce fossil carbon emissions by setting a cap on the total amount of greenhouse gases that can be emitted by specific sectors.
Jane Cherrington, Director – Climate at Local Partnerships.
The UK ETS Authority has announced the intention to expand the scheme to cover incinerators and Energy-from-Waste (EFW) plants from 2028, with data gathering starting in 2026. This means EfW facilities will receive or buy emission allowances.
Monitoring, reporting and verification for each tonne of fossil CO2 generated by combustion processes will start next year, so change is fast approaching.
The proposed changes will apply to all household and municipal waste, and that generated by commercial and industrial sources.
There are no exemptions for clinical and hazardous waste within the current proposals. The scheme covers almost any activity which ultimately results in the waste material being burned, so advanced technologies, such as pyrolysis and gasification, are within scope.
What will the cost be?
The potential costs of ETS are not fully known at this stage – the cost of allowances can fluctuate based on market conditions.
What could this mean for those who operate and use these facilities, in particular local authorities and private waste collectors?
Local authorities and companies from across the UK are starting to come together to share their knowledge and ideas as they increasingly turn their attention to possible financial and practical implications of the proposed expansion of ETS.
It certainly is great to see knowledge of the new UK-wide scheme growing across the sector.
Facility operators have been exploring how they can adapt to the new requirements through more pre-sorting to remove fossil-based recyclables, ways to make their processing more efficient through CHP (combined heat and power), and the investment in carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS).
Entities that collect waste are beginning to explore how applying the waste hierarchy will provide multiple benefits, but most importantly, in today’s difficult financial climate, how they will tackle cost avoidance.
Although this scheme might increase operational costs initially, it also fosters innovation aimed at reducing emissions and carbon footprints. Ultimately, these changes can lead to significant long-term environmental and cost savings.
Decades of thinking and practical application have shown us that the waste hierarchy and polluter pays principle are two of the most effective foundations of policy for waste and resource management. The UK ETS is no different.
The key points
Here are some key points to help you on your ETS journey:
Review your services and identify opportunities to drive minimisation, increase recycling and improve the quality of what you collect – this could include changes to collections, whether it’s collection frequency to drive recycling, expansions to include additional materials or a refreshed communications campaign.
Engagement with your current residual waste provider is key to understanding potential risks. Start conversations with them to understand how your emissions, and costs, will be calculated. Also, think wider, will there be impacts on any collection or treatment contracts as you reshape your services away from disposal?
Make financial provision from 2028 for the potential cost increases as a result of UK ETS. Your corporate risk registers and medium-term financial plans need to reflect the possible financial impacts.
Areas to watch:
Watch out for guaranteed minimum tonnages on your disposal contract as you divert more fossil-based materials.
Typically, we think of plastic bottles and packaging as fossil-based materials, but what about other products like small electricals that have plastic housing, plastic-based textiles like polyester or even wrapping paper? Diverting or recycling these materials may be more difficult.
Do you have enough processing capacity for the additional recycling and/or new materials, such as flexible plastics and food waste?
Investment in carbon capture and storage has the potential to contribute, but this is still a developing field and is likely to be expensive initially.
Watch recycling contamination levels – reject rates within mixed recycling collections are typically between 5% and 15% and end up in EfW.
Looking ahead, the UK ETS is expected to play a crucial role in the UK’s path to net zero emissions by 2050. The scheme aims to have a profound impact on reducing carbon emissions, driving economic innovation, and improving environmental quality.
While challenges remain, the scheme is a vital tool in the UK’s strategy to combat climate change and transition to a sustainable future. A scheme like this will continue to evolve, becoming more stringent, with a lower cap on emissions and fewer free allowances.
Making long-term investments in reducing the quantities of fossil-based materials we dispose of through applying the waste hierarchy, coupled with making long-term investments in low-carbon technologies can only be seen as a positive – but we need to be ready.
It is never too early to start planning, 2028 is not far away from implementing service changes, securing additional recycling capacity or educating customers. Are you on a journey of change, or are you simply bracing for impact?
The report, produced by Ceres Waste, Renewables, and Environment in partnership with CIWM, calls on UK ETS Authority to ensure that the cost allocation of ETS charges for the EfW sector fully reflects the waste composition and that there is a practical system for ensuring this is the case.
CIWM said it believes failing to do so will not fully incentivise the intended reduction in carbon in EfW feedstock, which it calls the “primary driver” for introducing ETS to the sector.
The report, “The Systemic Impact of ETS on the Resources & Waste Sector”, says that implementing ETS into the EfW sector from 2028 will significantly increase the cost of generating energy from residual waste through the UK’s network of EfW facilities.
Commenting on the potential challenges associated with implementing ETS in the EfW sector, CIWM’s Director of Policy, Communications and External Affairs, Dan Cooke, said: “The costs passed through to EfW must reflect the actual composition of their waste in order to incentivise those who have invested in measures to reduce fossil carbon content in their waste.
“Failure to reward this action would mean there is no business case for change and the ETS would effectively become an EfW tax.”
Failure to reward this action would mean there is no business case for change and the ETS would effectively become an EfW tax.
CIWM said that, whilst ETS won’t impact all stakeholders equally, gate fess will approximately increase by 50% across the board, which could result in an additional £660 million annual bill for UK local authorities.
More positively, the report outlines that implementing ETS into the EfW sector will also provide opportunities such as increased plastics separation, chemical recycling, and carbon capture and storage.
The CIWM report also emphasised the need to ensure that all the revenue collected by the ETS is ring-fenced for interventions that will increase recycling rates, divert fossil plastics out of residual waste, and support the UK in meeting its target of achieving net zero by 2050.
Cooke continued that one of the main issues to overcome is that EfW operators can “do little to influence” the composition of residual waste they receive from customers.
“Brands and manufacturers have the greatest ability to reduce the quantity of fossil content from residual waste through the material choices they make for their products and packaging,” Cooke said.
“These businesses, however, are not directly impacted by ETS, as costs are only passed back to the waste producer and not onto the supply chain.
“Plastic packaging is estimated to contribute 70% of the fossil carbon in residual waste. Selecting alternative materials and/or increasing the recyclability of the packaging would significantly reduce the ETS burden for waste producers and have the greatest impact on reducing carbon.”
WRAP renames the Courtauld Commitment 2030, the UK’s longest-running food system transformation programme, the UK Food and Drink Pact in rebranding move.
The fundamentals of the programme remain the same but the branding change aligns with WRAP’s other voluntary agreement the UK Plastics Pact.
WRAP, the environmental non-governmental organisation (NGO), has also recently expanded its international focus with the global Food Pact Network.
Nearly 200 organisations across the food and drink supply chain, as well as trade bodies, local authorities and charities, signed up to the Courtauld Commitment 2030.
Current members include Aldi, Arla, ASDA, Bidfood, Co-op, Costa, Danone, Diageo, Lidl, M&S, McDonald’s, Morrisons, Nestle, Ocado, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Unilever, Waitrose.
Commenting on the rebranding, WRAP’s Cailey Grice, Delivery Manager – UK Food & Drinks Pact, said the UK Food and Drink Pact is a “collaborative, non-competitive and trusted network”.
Grice continued that membership grants businesses access to “evidence-based tools, practical resources and a collaborative working group”.
Members of the UK Food and Drink Pact voluntarily commit to goals led by WRAP, such as reducing food waste by 50% per capita (vs the UK 2007 baseline) by 2030.
The other targets are to halve greenhouse gas emissions arising from the food and drink system (against a 2015 baseline) and ensure that half of all fresh food is sourced from areas with sustainable water management.
WRAP said the targets align with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 12.3 and United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 6.
Lissa Appleby pleaded guilty to a single offence of failing to remove illegal waste and fined £550 and also ordered to pay a victim’s surcharge of £220 at Cannock Magistrates Court.
