The Scottish Parliament has recently passed the landmark Circular Economy Bill, a significant step towards transforming the way Scotland manages its resources and waste.
This comprehensive legislation aims to foster a sustainable, circular economy by introducing a range of measures designed to reduce waste, increase recycling, and promote the reuse of materials.
Here’s a summary of the key points from the recent Circular Economy Bill:
Section 1: Circular Economy Strategy
The bill mandates that Scottish Ministers develop a Circular Economy Strategy outlining their plans, objectives and the mechanisms for monitoring progress.
The initial strategy must be published within two years and reviewed every five years thereafter. This strategy will serve as a guiding framework for policy and legislative decisions, ensuring that all governmental actions align with the principles of a circular economy.
Sections 2 to 5 refer to the mechanics of consulting, publication review and reporting on the strategy.
Section 6: Circular Economy Targets
To support the Circular Economy Strategy, the bill allows Scottish Ministers to set specific targets aimed at:
- Reducing carbon emissions associated with material consumption
- Increasing the reuse, refurbishment, repair, and recycling of materials
- Minimizing waste generation
Section 6 of the regulations detail how these targets should be monitored and the progress reported to ensure accountability and continuous improvement.
Section 8: Restrictions on Disposal of Unsold Consumer Goods
A significant provision in the bill empowers Scottish Ministers to create regulations that prohibit or limit the disposal of unsold consumer goods. Instead of sending these items to landfills or incinerators, companies will be required to reuse, donate or recycle them.
Although the specific types of goods covered by this provision will be defined in future regulations, this marks a crucial step towards reducing unnecessary waste.
Offenses for non-compliance will incur fixed penalty notices, reinforcing the bill’s enforcement mechanism.
Section 9: Charges for Single-Use Items
The bill introduces regulations requiring suppliers to include charges for single-use items, particularly those used as containers or packaging likely to be disposed of after a short period.
While the specifics will be determined through regulations, the initial focus will be on single-use coffee cups, with potential extensions to other items in the future.
Albion would love for this to be extended further to a ban on the use of disposable items when sitting in catering establishments, increased penalties for flytipping offenses and mandating local authorities to report flytipping data for better coordination and analysis.
Here at Albion would like to see this fly tipping data on a publicly accessible forum which would then help drive accountability for targeting fly tipping!
Section 10: Household Waste Duty of Care
A new criminal offense is introduced for householders who breach their duty of care regarding household waste.
This will apply primarily in cases where flytipping can be traced back to a householder, with fixed penalty notices as the main enforcement tool.
Section 11: Household Waste Requirements
Local authorities are given new powers to issue penalties to householders who fail to comply with recycling requirements.
Previously, authorities could only serve notices; now, they can impose civil penalties for first offenses and fixed penalty notices for persistent violations.
This is an important policy and will add some “teeth” to current council contamination policies!
Section 12: Household Waste Recycling Code of Practice
Scottish Ministers are required to publish a Code of Practice, setting standards for local authorities in their household waste and recycling collection duties.
This aims to ensure consistency across local authority recycling services, transitioning from the existing voluntary to a mandated approach.
Section 13: Local Authority Targets
The bill allows for the imposition of recycling targets on local authorities, with fines for non-compliance.
However, these targets will not be enforced before April 1, 2030, giving authorities time to adapt and meet the new standards which does all seem rather a long way away!
Section 14: Littering from Vehicles
The bill makes the registered keeper of a vehicle responsible for littering offenses committed from within the vehicle, introducing a civil penalty charge to address this issue.
This one is long overdue and a huge opportunity for tech and CCTV companies to come together with Councils and provide a method for collecting evidence and issuing fixed penalties at key littering blackspots!
Sections 15-16: Enforcement Powers
New enforcement powers are granted to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) and other agencies, allowing for the search and seizure of vehicles involved in environmental crimes such as waste crime and flytipping.
Again, our view is that this is a long overdue power! To have any hope of reducing waste crime, regulators need to be able to hurt operators where it matters – seizing vehicles will hurt the operators, finally making waste crime much less attractive!
Section 17: Publicly Reporting Information
Businesses will be required to publicly report on waste and surplus, starting with food waste and potentially extending to other sectors.
Proposals Not Taken Forward
Some proposals were not included in the final bill, such as commercial waste zoning, the creation of a dedicated circular economy public body, and expanded powers for household waste charges.
The Circular Economy Bill marks a transformative shift towards sustainability in Scotland, setting a robust framework for reducing waste, promoting recycling, and fostering a more circular economy.
By enacting these measures, Scotland is paving the way for a more sustainable future.
Click here to read the Official Circular Economy (Scotland) Bill
If you have any comments or queries on the new bill, please leave a comment below, we would love to hear from you!