The Challenge

Compliance with Evolving Legislation

• Packaging Extended Producer Responsibility (pEPR): Businesses must now cover the full net cost of managing their packaging waste, increasing compliance and reporting burdens. Authorities will now receive funding for the necessary net costs for operating efficient and effective services.

• Deposit Return Schemes (DRS): Local authorities may lose material volumes and thus revenue from high-value recyclables, requiring new financial and operating models.

• Simpler Recycling: The push for standardised waste collections (including food waste) across England may require infrastructure upgrades and cause disruption during transition. It also places additional financial burdens on local authorities.

• Landfill bans: The forthcoming ban on biodegradable waste to landfill and how infrastructure will meet this challenge.

• Net Zero Commitments: Waste strategies must align with decarbonisation goals, putting pressure on authorities and companies to track and reduce emissions from waste. Many local authorities have declared a climate emergency and in many cases strategies need to be implemented in order to achieve net zero.

Data, Reporting, and Traceability

• Businesses face growing expectations for transparent waste tracking, including carbon impacts (Scope 3 emissions).

• Digital waste tracking (mandated by the UK government) is on the horizon, meaning both public and private sectors need to prepare for new compliance software and protocols.

• Local authorities must improve data accuracy and reporting to meet DEFRA and Environment Agency demands, often with outdated digital systems.

Circular Economy Transition

• The linear "take-make-dispose" model is increasingly unviable. There's pressure to design out waste and reuse materials; but systems to support this are immature.

• Businesses must adapt supply chains, product design, and procurement practices to close material loops, which requires cross-sector collaboration and investment.

• Local authorities are asked to stimulate reuse and repair infrastructure, yet often lack funding and stakeholder alignment.

Cost Pressures and Funding Gaps

• Rising costs of treatment, energy, and labour put strain on local authority waste contracts and business waste operations.

• Landfill and incineration gate fees are increasing, particularly in the face of tighter emissions rules.

• Funding for innovation in collection, sorting, and reuse infrastructure is inconsistent, limiting progress.

Capacity and Infrastructure Challenges

• The UK lacks adequate domestic recycling capacity, leading to over-reliance on export markets which are vulnerable to bans and instability, particularly when material quality is poor.

• Local authorities struggle with aging vehicle fleets and depots unsuited to evolving collection demands (e.g. separate food or battery waste) and the net zero ambitions.

• Anaerobic digestion and composting infrastructure for food waste is unevenly distributed.

Consumer Behaviour & Contamination

• Both sectors struggle with high contamination rates in recycling streams—undermining value and processing efficiency.

• Confusion about what can be recycled persists, despite labeling improvements and guidance efforts.

• Local authorities must balance education campaigns with enforcement, while businesses grapple with influencing consumer disposal behaviours.

Commercial Waste Regulation

• SMEs often lack access to convenient and affordable recycling services. Compliance with Simpler Recycling which came into force in March 2025 can be low due to cost, storage availability for the requisite range of containers or simply confusion.

• Councils providing commercial waste services must operate competitively, while still delivering public good, creating tension in service models.

Innovation & Technology Uptake

• Waste tech (AI sorting, IoT bins, smart route planning) offers efficiency and insight—but uptake is slow due to funding and skills gaps.

• There's a growing need for cross-sector partnerships to pilot circular innovations and scalable infrastructure (e.g., sharing repair hubs, industrial symbiosis).

Strategic Response

Challenge

Policy complexity

Circular pressures

Cost and capacity

Behavioural barriers

Tech disruption

Strategic Need

Robust tracking, advisory input

Redesign services, partner broadly

Targeted investment, innovation

Stronger engagement, education

Digital transformation

Implication

Risk of non-compliance

Operational overhaul

Budget strain

Material losses

Lagging performance