Hilary Benn hints at landfill ban

Environment secretary Hilary Benn has indicated that a ban on certain items being sent to landfill could be on the cards.

He made the comments ahead of the speech at the launch of the Aldersgate Group's Beyond Carbon report.

Mr Benn called on companies to adopt resource efficiency measures for their own benefit and that of the environment.

Businesses produce 90 per cent of all waste, he said, with much of it being sent to landfill, a practice that is unacceptable if Britain is to develop a resource-efficient economy.

"We will reach it [resource efficiency] by re-using things as much as we can, turning them into something else when we can't and recycling to give them an infinite lifespan," Mr Benn stated.

The environment secretary added that he will be consulting on proposals to prevent specific materials and items being sent to landfill in the UK.

Targets set out under the EU landfill directive stipulate that Britain must reduce the amount of biodegradable municipal waste sent to landfill to 50 per cent of that produced in 1995 by 2013, falling further to 35 per cent by 2020.

Posted by Claire Manning