The State of Composting in the UK 2003/04: Results Composting Association's Survey into Composting and Collection Facilities

Slater, Rachel (2005). The State of Composting in the UK 2003/04: Results Composting Association's Survey into Composting and Collection Facilities. The Composting Association.

URL: http://technology.open.ac.uk/iws/docs/StateofCompo...

Abstract

The Composting Association has conducted surveys assessing the State of Composting in the UK since 1994.
They provide important and detailed information on industry trends and areas of growth, and help highlight areas
for future policy development. The production of this survey was made possible by the financial support of the
Environment Agency and the Waste Resources Action Programme.
The survey results are important in assessing the industry’s role and contribution to a number of recent policy
developments aimed at managing biodegradable wastes more sustainably. The Waste and Emissions Trading
(WET) Act 2003 and the Landfill Allowance Trading Scheme (LATS) introduce progressively tighter restrictions on
the amount of biodegradable wastes that authorities can landfill, designed to meet the Landfill Directive
(EC/31/99) targets. In addition, varying recycling and composting targets are set out in the respective Waste
Strategies for England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, and the Household Waste Recycling Act 2003 has
come into force in England.
This survey was carried out in 2004, and covered the financial year April 2003 to March 2004. Data were
collected from compost producers and local authorities by means of either a postal or electronic (e-mail)
questionnaire. The questionnaire sent to local authorities covered organic waste collected from household waste
recycling centres and kerbside recycling schemes. The questionnaire sent to compost producers sought data on
organic waste types and quantities, facility and process types, together with product and market information. The
survey was distributed to a total of 474 local authorities and 410 compost producers and attained an overall
response rate of 43 %.