Why is waste minimisation and recycling so important in the Braintree District?

Residents and businesses in the Braintree District are producing an increasing amount of waste each year. Although this is partly due to the growth in population, the average waste produced per household is also increasing. On average each household now produces nearly 1 tonne of waste each year.

Most household refuse from the District is disposed of by landfill at Stanway near Colchester.  This refuse tip, like others in the County is filling rapidly, raising serious questions about how we should dispose of our refuse in the future.  Apart from a shortage of suitable holes for future landfill in the area nobody wants a major refuse tip or incinerator on their doorstep.  A European Directive is also forcing us to look differently at the way in which we deal with our waste to help combat climate change.  It requires biodegradable wastes such as paper, card, kitchen and garden rubbish to be recycled, or treated to make it inert before it can be landfilled.

Essex local authorities are working  on a joint strategy to deal with household waste.  This will concentrate on removing as much recycling from the waste stream as possible through kerbside collections and then treating the remaining refuse in an industrial process called mechanical biological treatment.  MBT will extract even more recycling and produce an inert waste.  A consultation on the latest version of this strategy will be launched in February 2008.

By working together and taking greater responsibility for our waste, we can dramatically reduce the amount we produce. We need to start by taking more responsibility for what we buy, avoiding unnecessary packaging and choosing products that last longer and are re-usable.

One way of reducing waste going to landfill is to recycle. In the Braintree District we currently recycle about 36% of the domestic waste we generate.   Every property in the District is served by a fortnightly collection of recycling, and approximately three quarters of those also receive organic waste collections. 

Organic waste from gardens and kitchens has traditionally been collected with household refuse. This waste can be composted at home in the garden or taken away for composting in larger schemes. Over a third of all our waste can be dealt with by composting. Look out for special offers on Home Compost Bins and new schemes being introduced to collect garden waste.

What about waste from businesses?

In addition to the domestic waste problem, our local businesses generate large amounts of waste. By working with businesses to reduce their waste the Council can help local industry become more competitive.