Beyond waste: delivering a circular economy

摘要

Wales has been on an impressive waste management journey to transition from a linear economy to a true circular economy. The country is successfully breaking the old mould of extraction of resources, production of goods and services, and disposal of post-consumer waste to achieve a paradigm shift where resources and materials are kept in use for as long as possible, avoiding preventable waste. In March this year, the Welsh Government published its latest and most ambitious strategy: Beyond Recycling. This remarkable journey began more than 20 years ago at which point only 7% of local authority collected municipal waste was recycled or composted, with 93% going to landfill. The Welsh Government's objective was to increase recycling rates and divert remaining waste away from landfill. A collections blueprint was established to collect and segregate recyclable high-quality materials in a consistent way. Alongside this, energy from residual waste was recovered, and food waste treated through anaerobic digestion to produce energy and natural fertiliser.