It’s time to fix our broken waste system for good

Whatever happened to “reduce, reuse, recycle”? The Scottish Government is telling all of us to recycle more while Ministers plan to burn and bury more of Scotland’s waste than ever before.  

Last week, it was quietly announced that a ban on biodegradable waste, like food and garden waste, being sent to landfill would be delayed for a second time. The Scottish Government wants to avoid scrutiny on their decision to trash this central waste policy.  However, their continual failure to stop this waste ending up in landfill where it will produce climate wrecking emissions, shows that their actions don’t match their words.  

This is just one example of the Scottish Government’s failing record on waste. The rollout of a £70m recycling scheme has not increased recycling rates, which have been stuck at around 45% for over a decade. It is now virtually impossible for the Scottish Government to hit its 70% recycling target for 2025.  

The official reason for delaying the landfill ban is that new incinerator plants, being built to burn the waste instead, are not ready yet. However, this plan to build incinerators is replacing one toxic waste treatment with another. Incinerators spew out pollution which harms local people’s health and contributes directly to climate change.  

Nearly 2 million tonnes of waste were burned in Scotland in 2024, which is more than triple 2011 levels.  

As the amount of rubbish burned increases, so does the harmful pollution. Last year, incinerators in Scotland released poisonous chemicals like arsenic, mercury and chromium into the air, which are linked to cancer. Communities are deeply concerned about the incinerators being developed on their doorsteps, but the Scottish Government has repeatedly refused to use its powers to stop them being switched on. Since Scottish Ministers pledged to stop new incinerators being developed in 2022, they have outrageously allowed them to be developed near to schools and hospitals. 

On top of this, incinerators are expensive and unreliable. The new incinerator in Aberdeen closed suddenly in June 2025 when one of the operating companies pulled out of the project, citing “ongoing issues”. The incinerator cost £150m of public money to build, and yet local people were left without proper bin services for weeks.  

So, if landfill and incineration aren’t the answer to our waste problems, what is? The solution is so obvious that every primary school child in Scotland could tell you: we’ve got to reduce, reuse and recycle more. The Scottish Government is currently consulting on a circular economy strategy which aims to change the way we use materials. One of its key plans is to use ‘behavioural change’ to make people recycle more. But it’s unfair to push this responsibility onto people when it’s the system that is broken. 

This strategy needs a radical rethink if it’s to really fix the waste problem. Firstly, there is still time for the Scottish Government to stop six more proposed incinerators. Stopping these incinerators before they are turned on is a vital step towards progress – we can’t recycle more if all the waste is being burned. 

We also need the Scottish Government to make it easier for us all to reuse and repair the things we already own. We could all save so much money if there were easy ways to get things like toasters, washing machines and hairdryers fixed so that they last for a lot longer. Recycling needs to be made easier too, with the same simple rules for the whole country so that everybody knows what can and can’t go in each bin. 

Finally, instead of telling people to recycle more, the Scottish Government needs to reduce the amount of waste created in the first place – this is the best way to cut council waste management bills and be more green.  

Reducing waste means changing the way products are designed and made before they become rubbish. It requires the Scottish Government to get tough with companies that sell stuff which can’t be easily recycled. It’s these firms that should be paying for the damage their products do, not the public.  

The UK Government is introducing new rules which mean that companies pay for the clean-up of the packaging from the products they sell, generating more than £1bn for councils to improve recycling collections. The Scottish Government should introduce an ambitious programme of similar policies to cover many difficult to recycle products, like toys, sports equipment and DIY tools. This could raise much needed cash for our councils at a time when every penny counts. 

It’s time for the Scottish Government to dump its failing waste plans and start acting in ways that benefits people and protects nature. Stop treating people like they are the problem and start finding solutions which make their lives easier instead.