Thursday, 03 November 2011 12:01

Local authorities recycle more waste

Written by  Ruralcity Media
Local authorities recycle more waste

RURAL local authorities are among those with the highest recycling rates, according to the latest government figures.

Final waste and recycling estimates for local authority across England in 2010-11 were published by Defra on Thursday (3 November).

They show an increase in household recycling to 41.2% for the year ending March 2011 compared to 39.7% for the previous 12 months.

The top 20 local authorities recycling the highest proportion of collected household waste are shown in the table below:

Local Authorities Recycling Most Waste
1 Rochford District Council 66%
2 South Oxfordshire District Council 65%
3 Surrey Heath Borough Council 65%
4 Bournmouth Borough Council 64%
5 Cotswold District Council 60%
6 Staffordshire Moorlands District Council 60%
7 Stratford-on-Avon District Council 59%
8 Epping Forest Borough Council 59%
9 Suffolk Coastal District Council 59%
10 Harborough District Council 58%
11 Huntingdonshire District Council 58%
12 Cherwell District Council 57%
13 Teignbridge District Council 57%
14 Rutland County Council 57%
15 Lichfield District Council 57%
16 South Cambridgeshire District Council 56%
17 West Lindsey District Council 56%
18 Mole Valley District Council 55%
19 Uttlesford District Council 55%
20 East Lindsey District Council 55%
source: Defra


Over the same 2010-11 period, the Defra figures show that the generation of household waste decreased by 0.9% to 23.5 million tonnes.

The weight of household waste per person was 449 kg. Of this total, 185kg was recycled, composted or reused whilst 264kg was not.

Local authority collected waste sent to landfill declined.

The tonnage of local authority collected waste being sent to landfill fell by 8.8% to 11.4 million tonnes.

Further details regarding waste and recycling can be found on the Defra website here.

Complete local authority level reports can be produced from the Wastedataflow website by clicking here.

Defra said it would be producing the usual spreadsheets and publishing this data shortly. Limited local authority level data for 2010-11 is available here (Microsoft Excel file).