Landfill Tax 3 - Rates are a Rising - Employment Generation

Two things are certain in life - death and taxes. We are told that business would like certainty in taxation. Landfill tax is exemplar. We can be certain that landfill tax will continue to rise on its escalator. Last April saw the last rise and the government continues the aura of certainty - that there will be future hikes in the rate of Landfill Tax!

Are we benefiting? Yes, yes and yes! More employment could be forecast as new work opportunities come about. Examples include:

• increased rapidity in research projects as new recycling techniques and energy generation techniques look increasingly viable;



• more lecturing of the above in terms of an increasing knowledge base for: 1) the economic impact, 2) the engineering impact; 3) the facilities management impact (I could go on);



• more operational impact in the recycling industry and the energy industry (I could go on);



• larger professional groups in the above....etc.

I started my "career" in recycling at the age of 10 years. It is still a passion. Then, I collected paper for the local Saturday cinema club in Rochester. Told my Gran (Granny Parsons) of my ambition to win. "Leave it with me", she said. I gathered my comics, etc as the weeks rolled by. But I did not feel hopeful.

Come the day. Gran had said "Uncle Fred will pick you up." I walked into the cinema and the manager was greeting us children: he asked me "Where is your paper?" "Outside." "Bring it in. "Can't, come and see." From the cab of a borrowed lorry Uncle Fred asked the manager (now dumbfounded) "Where do you want the load delivered?" It ended up in Sittingbourne paper mills. I had won!

They were great prizes too!

Landfill Tax 2 - Moving the Goal Post! - Shared services an Anwer?

Our landfill waste disposers have got the message by now, namely "Recycling Pays"! It is less certain that Tom(s), Dick(s) and Harry(s) have yet digested all of the millions of messages the government, local authorities and others are sending to them. How much is each household paying for landfilling?


What can be done to help the citizen who wants to recycle more and more?


I reckon that nearly 100% of waste can be recycled if waste movers and other stakeholders in the industry could embrace all types of recyclable waste. It seems that every "take-away" rubbish council has a small number of prohibitions against certain items. Thus, locally for example I understand that tetra drinks containers which are recyclable are banned to the landfill site; not withstanding that they are non-landfill now. "What causes the "inertia" for tetra and similarly treated items?


One answer might to be a policy of a move to more shared services. With landfill tax destined to increase every year until 2020 (at least) - a moving goal post - much more needs to be done!