Fall in Dumfries and Galloway household waste recycling rate

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The amount of household waste being recycled in Dumfries and Galloway has fallen.

A total of 26,000 tonnes of rubbish was recycled in 2023, compared to 29,747 in the previous 12 months.

The figures from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency show that with 63,110 tonnes of rubbish being generated by homes, the recycling rate stood at 41.2 per cent – down from 45.1 per cent in 2022.

The stats reveal that 31,724 tonnes of rubbish that weren’t recycled were diverted from landfill, with just 5,385 tonnes – or 8.5 per cent – landfilled.

That compares favourably with 2022, when 6,028 tonnes – 9.1 per cent – had to be landfilled.

Each person was responsible for generating 0.43 tonnes of waste, down from 0.45 tonnes last year.

However, the amount recycled fell from 0.2 tonnes per person to 0.17 tonnes.

Across Scotland, 2.3 million tonnes of household waste was generated, down 0.1 per cent from 2022.

A total of 43.5 per cent was recycled and 409,000 tonnes was landfilled – down 177,000 tonnes from the previous year.

Head of energy, industry and materials at SEPA, Jo Zwitserlood, said: “Scotland has ambitions for a circular economy where more of the materials produced and consumed in Scotland are re-used, recycled and remanufactured in Scotland, creating a range of environmental, economic and societal benefits.

“We’ve all got a role to play – the consumption of products and use of materials touches on every one of us. We’re making positive steps towards lowering the carbon impact of Scotland’s household waste and seeing lower amounts of waste generated and disposed of to landfill, which is key to addressing the environmental impact of waste management.

“At SEPA we continue to play our part in helping Scotland transition to a circular economy, working collaboratively with Scottish Government, Zero Waste Scotland, Scottish Councils, and Scotland’s reprocessing and waste management sector.”

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