Sustainability Action Plan

about this principle

Waste from discarded products and packaging create a huge disposal challenge while squandering valuable resources. While recycling is on the increase in the UK - we achieved a 31% recycling and composting rate in 2006/7 - the amount of waste we produce is increasing. Each of us is responsible for half a tonne of waste each year at home as well as the waste we produce at work or out and about. We need to reduce the amount of waste we produce and increase the amount we recycle and compost. 

Aim

We aim to reduce the amount of waste that is land filled by reducing packaging waste through good design and encouraging reuse and recycling.

By 2025 less than 2% of waste by weight should be sent to landfill.
- At least 90% of office waste by weight should be reclaimed, composted or recycled
- At least 70% of waste by weight generated from all other operations should be reclaimed, composted or recycled
- Clean energy from waste plant may form part of the zero waste strategy provided careful monitoring of emissions is in place and international best practice standards on operations are employed

Now we need to come up with appropriate strategies for Sutton and the Sustainability Action Plan will help us to do this. The waste team at the London Borough of Sutton are already off to a great start. Sutton residents recycle or compost 30% of their waste, and once the Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) plant at Beddington Lane is up and running at full speed, the recycling or composting rate should rise to 55%. But the MBT can't cope with the increase in textiles in the waste stream which has risen from roughly 1% to 12%, due to the increasing popularity of cheap, literally throw-away fashion. As residents you can help with this by buying clothes that last and, if you do need to get rid of clothes, take them to a charity shop or a clothing bank.
To find your nearest recycling facilities try the postcode search tool from Recycle For London.