Assignments Undertaken and Publications

Rapid growth in sales of e-cigarettes which cannot be refilled and whose batteries can’t be recharged has given rise to growing environmental and health concerns. This report, for Zero Waste Scotland, explores at a high level, options for addressing these environmental concerns.

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With many materials sectors - and consumer goods companies - basing their net zero strategies on greater recycling, or greater use of recycled content, what does sorting of leftover mixed waste have to offer? What are the implications for landfills and incinerators?

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What is the potential for GHG emissions reduction from better management of waste? Is the opportunity being under-estimated? This work was undertaken with former colleagues from Eunomia.

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Coupling high quality sorting of leftover (after separate collection) mixed waste to biological stabilisation of waste prior to landfilling offers a zero methane, zero fossil CO2 option for treating waste that did not get soirted by citizens or businesses. The study considers the potential costs of such approaches, and the key variables driving costs.

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Is the EU’s preference for incineration justified? If not, what policies should the EU implement for the management of residual waste consistent with its circular economy ambitions?

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A manufacturer of pet foods asked for a second opinion on a report they had commissioned on pathways to net zero. A brief report for them highlighted where they could make further progress

How should producer responsibility organisations ensure their implementation of extended producer responsibility is aligned with EU law? How are concepts such as ‘full bet costs’, and fee modulation best implemented?

The incineration of waste doesn’t eliminate the material - new residues are generated, some of them hazardous. This report estimates the amount of residues landfilled across the EU27

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The Russian invasion of Ukraine has highlighted continuing dependence of the EU on gas imports for industry and for heat and power. To what extent do incinerators reduce demand for gas, and to what extent might they contribute to doing so in future?

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EU legislation indicates a preference for ‘recovery’ over ‘disposal’. An energy efficiency threshold is used to make the distinction between incinerators defined as recovery, and those to be defined as disposal. 98% of all municipal waste in the EU is sent to ‘recovery’ incinerators, suggesting the basis for distinction is meaningless.

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I’m pleased to be supporting Reloop Platform, a leading NGO working on the circular economy, as they seek to influence the work of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee in developing an instrument to address plastic pollution. I’m preparing position papers and perspectives on the issue.

These and other documents can be found here (external site)

Small format flexible packages (‘sachets’) contribute significantly to plastic pollution in many Asian (and other) countries. This work reviewed extended producer responsibility (EPR) legislation for (plastic) packaging in India, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam. It suggests all the schemes have shortcomings and that they seem unlikely to address the problem of sachets. To do so systematically, other policies, such as using taxes, either alone or in support of phase-outs, will be more effective.

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If methane emissions are reduced swiftly, there can be a resultant reduction in global temperatures from this short-lived pollutant. This paper looks at how biological stabilization (akin to composting) can address the issue: instead of trying to capture waste which emits methane once landfilled, treating the approach reduces the propensity of waste to generate methane before it’s placed in landfills. This work includes a novel comparison of how different approaches affect temperature increase over time.

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This paper was prepared at the request, and with the support of, the World Biogas Association (WBA) with guidance also from ISWA. The value of methane mitigation lies in the fact that, as a short-lived climate pollutant, by reducing the rate of emission, we can reduce its contribution to global temperature change. Recommendations focus on valorising methane emissions and their reduction, and the role of climate finance.

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Working with Trove Research (now part of MSCI), this research looked at the scale and nature of investment in the market for voluntary carbon credits across the globe. Based on data from various sources, it identified emerging trends in the sectors receiving such investment.

It’s possible to gain additional materials by mechanically sorting the mixed waste leftover after people and businesses have ‘used’ their recycling service. This can help reduce GHG emissions associated with producing stuff. Emerging projects propose to capture carbon dioxide from incinerators post-combustion. This report looks at the effects, and the costs, of each, and whether they could be complementary, or are better considered as alternatives.

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The EU seems likely to include incineration within the scope of its Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS). The UK has also made a decision to include incineration in the UK-ETS. This report considers key decisions that will need to be taken in this context.

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When the Landfill Levy was first introduced in the Republic of Ireland, the levy was small relative to the costs of landfilling. In the intervening years, the levy has increased, and landfill gate fees have fallen. The ‘value’ of the exemptions initially granted have increased to those able to avail themselves of them. This review, for the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications, took a backward look, and interrogated available datasets, to highlight some regulatory issues, and recommendations for changes to the exemptions.

On behalf of Reloop Platform and Zero Waste Network, we reviewed emerging proposals for a product stewardship scheme for plastic packaging in New Zealand. We commented on a number of issues related to the design of the proposed scheme, including assessing these against the Guidelines for such schemes developed by the Environment Minister.