| Summary
Until now, the Government has been too timid in its waste management policy. The Strategy Unit's recent report may prove to have been the turning point but we are still concerned that Defra's and the Environment Agency's lack of funds and expertise will delay real progress. Despite warm words from Defra ministers, the Department does not seem to have a real sense of where it wants to go, and the Agency still appears to be underfunded for its regulatory role. Once again, we question the Department's ability to negotiate and implement European Union laws to the best advantage of the United Kingdom.
Although cultural attitudes are a key factor in achieving sustainable waste management, the Government must translate the concept of the waste hierarchy into a workable economic system. At present the Government is relying on just one economic measure—the landfill tax—and is using it timidly. There is a much wider range of instruments available, incluanding graduated disposal taxes and variable household charging. Government should ensure there is a range of viable waste management options, but the choice between them should be a local one.
Local authorities bear much of the responsibility for sustainable management of municipal waste, but have relatively little power and few direct incentives to make waste a priority- particularly if their electorates do not. The truth of Defra's assertion that there is adequate funding for the improvements it wants remains to be proved. What is clear is that the money is either in the form of challenge funds or not specifically for waste. This is unsatisfactory because the problem must be addressed nationwide.
The Government should move away from targets based purely on weight and instead prioritise those waste streams which present the greatest threat to the environment, for example hazardous waste and landfilled biodegradable waste, and those where recycling presents the greatest savings of materials and energy.
Above all, we strongly urge the Government to demonstrate that it has seized the initiative in moving the United Kingdom away from arguments about different forms of disposal and towards a more efficient and less wasteful approach to resources.
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