Welcome To Wirral

Landfill is now often thought of as the last resort in terms of waste management but in the past it was considered the favoured option. This was due to the fact that it was a relatively cheap way of disposing of our rubbish, and space was easily available, usually at old quarry sites. However this 'out of sight, out of mind' mentality cannot be tolerated if we are to become a more sustainable society.

Approximately 100 million tonnes of waste are disposed of each year at the thousands of landfill sites operating in England and Wales. However space for landfill is due to run out in the very near future. This is evident in Wirral where Bidston Moss landfill site was closed several years ago and Bromborough landfill site is now full.

So what kind of waste is sent to landfill sites?

About 60-70% of the waste is biodegradable matter from households and businesses such as paper, card, textiles, food and garden waste. The remaining amount is 'inert' waste from construction and industry as well as non degradable household waste like glass, metal, plastic and ash.

What are the problems associated with landfill sites?

Besides taking up space in our countryside and towns with ugly, unsightly, rubbish dumps it they also pose many environmental threats. When biodegradable waste breaks down it releases the gases methane and carbon dioxide. These are both greenhouse gases which are responsible for global warming. Landfill sites produce 25% of total methane emissions in the UK, some of which is burned to produce electricity.

As well as the gas it produces, water from rainfall can mix with chemicals and heavy metals in the site to make a liquid substance called leachate. If a landfill is not managed properly the hazardous leachate can find its way into our water supplies and harm plants and animals in our streams and watercourses.

Landfills can also cause nuisance from their traffic, noise, dust and odour. On top all this, a high proportion of material we throw away can be re-used or recycled. So what is the government doing to reduce how much we send to landfill?

Landfill Tax

£2 per tonne for inert wastes, £11 per tonne for active wastes in 2001, rising to £15 per tonne by 2004 and to over £30 per tonne by around 2010

The amount of construction and demolition waste going to landfill has reduced substantially since the introduction of the tax. Industry has found alternative uses for waste, but much more construction waste, including soil and aggregates, could be re-used.

The Landfill Directive

The European Union has also introduced a legislation called The Landfill Directive which has sets targets for existing sites, including.

Reduce biodegradable municipal waste sent to landfill by 65% by 2020

Ban landfill of hazardous and non-hazardous wastes together from 2004

Ban liquid waste, and certain hazardous wastes.

Ban landfill of whole tyres by 2003 and shredded tyres by 2006

Overall, landfill sites have served their purpose in waste disposal for the last 100 years or so. However, it is now recognised that this is not the way forward for waste management and we must now look to more sustainable and environmentally friendly alternatives. Which is why reducing your rubbish, reusing as much of it as possible and then recycling the rest is so important. Check out your collection day information for what you can recycle in Wirral.