§ Mr. Frank R. Whiteasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what guidelines his Department give to local authorities in England and Wales regarding the recycling possibilities and revenue implications of waste paper and board; and what incentives are provided to encourage such activities.
§ Mr. Giles ShawA report by my Department on uniform accounting for local authority waste paper salvage schemes is freely available to authorities. It is for local authorities themselves to decide in the light of the possible returns whether and to what extent their involvement in such schemes is worth while.
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§ Mr. Frank R. Whiteasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his estimate of the volume of domestic refuse in the United Kingdom in the years 1976, 1978 and 1980; what percentage of each year's volume was waste paper and board; and what was the estimated revenue income to local authorities from the sale of waste paper and board.
§ Mr. Giles ShawThe information in my Department relates to England and Wales only: the position for Scotland and Northern Ireland is the responsibility of my right hon. Friends.
In 1976–77, domestic waste collected by English and Welsh local authorities amounted to 17,332,000 tonnes, in 1978–79 to 18,514,000 tonnes, and in 1980–81 to 19,072,000 tonnes. Approximately 30 per cent. by weight is paper and board.
The quantities of waste paper collected separately by local authorities in each of these years were 128,000 tonnes, 107,000 tonnes and 90,000 tonnes respectively. The sale of waste paper by local authorities realised £2,797,000, £2,821,000 and £2,397,000 respectively.