The ESA, a trade body representing the UK's resource and waste management industry, released their strategy last week.
The report states that despite recycling and waste management sectors having halved associated emissions in the last thirty years, the “climate emergency grows ever more pressing” and the sector still accounts for 8% of total UK emissions. Closing this gap to net zero will be an important challenge if the UK is to meet its net zero ambitions by 2050.
The strategy sets out the sector’s “collective ambition”, and outlines how it might be achieved by 2040, a galvanising 10 years ahead of the UK’s legally binding target, requiring strong collaboration between government and the whole waste and resources supply chain.
The strategy outlines the necessary steps to decarbonise the sector which include:
Each of the above actions are strengthened in the proposal with accompanying commitments and targets, which the ESA say will be reviewed every five years “to ensure they are both achievable and consistently ambitious”.
Although this strategy will undoubtedly take a lot of work across the whole sector, it is an ambitious but crucial step toward a necessarily low-carbon future.
You can view the ESA executive summary report here and also request full ESA report here.
Policy Manager
As Policy advisor Louisa provides key support to our team, including preparing reports on environmental policy issues and maintaining awareness of new developments. As such she will often be found coordinating responses to policy consultations, advocating policy positions and providing internal guidance to current legislation.