From today, households no longer have to pay to get rid
of DIY waste at council recycling centres
Changes will protect the environment by encouraging
responsible waste disposal whilst keeping down the cost of living
for households
Reforms build on wider Government action to tackle
fly-tipping and waste crime
Households no longer have to pay to get rid of small-scale DIY
waste at council recycling centres, boosting recycling and making
it easier for people to dispose of their waste in a responsible
manner.
The Government has abolished the fees which around one-third of
local authorities previously charged to dispose of DIY waste at
household waste recycling centres (HWRCs).
From today, all councils in England will now treat DIY waste the
same as other household waste when it meets certain conditions,
such as not exceeding 2x 50L rubble bags.
This change has the potential to save households hundreds of
pounds, with charges that were up to £10 an item, such as a piece
of plasterboard, now scrapped.
Today’s changes are the latest in a string of Government reforms
to make it simpler and easier to recycle. That includes a
consultation launched last week to make it easier to recycle
household electrical items and simpler household collection
rules announced in October.
The DIY waste changes came into force as of 31 December 2023 and
follow overwhelming public support at consultation, with 93% of
householders agreeing with the plans to amend legislation.
Recycling Minister said:
“We have delivered on our promise to make it easier and cheaper
for people making home improvements to get rid of their waste
properly.
“Removing charges for DIY waste at council recycling centres will
help New Year home improvement projects become a reality
and ensure that those disposing of waste responsibly
aren’t being penalised for doing so.”
The removal of the fees is part of the wider Government aim to
tackle waste crime and fly-tipping, which is estimated to cost
the economy £924m per year in England. Among other measures, last
year the Government announced grants
totalling £775,000 to help councils roll out a range of projects
to crack down on fly-tipping, with an additional £1m for
grants being made available this year.
The Government has also consulted on reforming the waste
carrier, broker, dealer regime and on introducing mandatory
digital waste tracking and is developing a fly-tipping
toolkit with the National Fly-Tipping Prevention Group to help
spread best practice on tackling the issue among local
authorities. The toolkit is being extended to raise awareness of
waste duty of care among householders and businesses.
Elsewhere, the Government has increased the maximum fines for
fly-tipping, littering and graffiti, while concurrently
ringfencing of the proceeds from those related fixed penalty
notices so that fines can be reinvested back into enforcement and
local clean-up activities.
