Waste Disposal Price Rises: April 2018 | News

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Global markets and economics are greatly influencing prices paid for waste disposal in the UK at the moment. We predict that these challenges will show themselves in above-average price rises from April 2018. April is historically a time where landfill tax rises and the waste industry typically increase prices across the board. However, this year, there are even more factors at play than usual:

China

China’s recent import ban of 24 waste streams including unsorted mixed papers and mixed plastics is pushing prices up for general waste and mixed recycling collections as the value of various plastics and cardboard fall. During our negotiations on behalf of our clients, we have already experienced a push for higher increases for Mixed Recycling services than for General Waste collections.

Landfill Tax

A 3.3% rise is scheduled for April 1st 2018, bringing Landfill tax per tonne to £88.95. Most people are aware that landfill availability in the UK is diminishing, resulting in a shortfall in comparison to the amount of waste generated. Added to that the lack of alternative waste treatment facilities (Energy from Waste plants) in the UK – the result is an increase in the costs of waste disposal.

Operating Costs

The waste industry is a labour-intensive industry where high numbers of staff are employed to collect and process waste. Higher payroll costs including pensions and the living wage, rising diesel and utility prices, fluctuating currency values, and supplier prices rises are causing significant operational challenges.

At ERA, we recognise that costs of running a business are growing all the time – there is no better a time to review your waste spend. There are a number of ways to mitigate this rise; here are three key ones:

1. Annually benchmark your supplier’s pricing against the marketplace, if you have not reviewed your waste spend or waste contractor for some time, you are particularly at risk of being impacted the hardest.
2. Review your waste sorting procedures against current best practice to make sure that you are optimising segregation and recycling. Despite this year’s rises, recycling is normally cheaper.
3. Consider reviewing your waste schedules to ensure an optimum service is in place. Are suppliers collecting fresh air or could matching collection days to busy periods help?

Many clients are turning to us for advice on what is a volatile market presently. If you would like more information about waste expense management, please contact us.

Article by: Daniel Howells

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