CIWM would like to use cookies to store information on your computer, to improve our website. One of the cookies we use is essential for parts of the site to operate and has already been set. You may delete and block all cookies from this site, but parts of the site will not work. To find out more about the cookies we use and how to delete them, see our CIWM Privacy Policy.

CIWM
You are here: CIWM  >  Publications  >  Latest News  >  Quarterly Defra Figures See Rise In Recycling Rates

Quarterly Defra Figures See Rise In Recycling Rates

9 May 2011

England's household waste recycling rose to 40.3 percent for the year to the end of September 2010, quarterly figures by Defra have revealed

Based on information submitted by councils to the government's WasteDataFlow system, the data also shows a continuing fall in the amount of household waste generated in England, down from 23.6m tonnes for the year ending June 2010 to 23.4m tonnes.

The Defra figures show a steady increase in England's household recycling rate, up from the 40.1 percent recorded for the 12 months ending June 2010 and the 39.7 percent recorded for the 2009/10 financial year.

The quarterly figures also reveal a jump from the 38.8 percent figure recorded for the same period a year earlier. In terms of quarterly performance, a 43 percent recycling rate was recorded for the three months July to September 2010, the same as for the previous three months.

The 23.4m tonnes of household waste generated in the year ending September 2010 was 1 percent less than that generated for the 2009/10 financial year, and Defra noted that the average annual change in total household waste over the five years to 2009/10 was a 1.6 percent decrease.

Results Summary

In the statistical release comparisons are made between the financial year April 2009 to March 2010 and the 12-month period October 2009 to September 2010, to minimise the effects of seasonal fluctuations.

  • The proportion of household waste sent for recycling, composting or reuse between October 2009 and September 2010 in England was 40.3 per cent, increasing from 39.7 per cent in the financial year April 2009 and March 2010.
  • The generation of household waste continued to decrease between the 2009/10 financial year and the year October 2009 to September 2010, with a 1.0 per cent reduction to 23.4 million tonnes.

The weight of household waste generated in the year October 2009 to September 2010 in England, in kilograms per person, was 452 kg per person. 182 kg of that was recycled, composted or reused whilst 270 kg was not.

The tonnage of local authority collected waste being sent to landfill by local authorities has decreased by 5.0 percent between the financial year 2009/10 and the year October 2009 to September 2010 to 11.9 million tonnes.

This continues the decrease of tonnes sent to landfill since 2002/03.

For more information visit www.defra.gov.uk

Darrel Moore