Significant changes are underway in the resources and waste sector that will have a deep impact on material recycling facilities (MRFs). Rob Cole reports.

West Sussex County Council has announced that it will be ending payments of recycling credits to District and Borough Councils from 1 April 2020, claiming the system has ‘not driven any significant improvement in performance’.

Recycling Technologies has joined forces with energy company Total and global brands Nestlé and Mars to develop an industrial chemical recycling industry in France.

The European Bioplastics annual market data update has confirmed that the bioplastics industry is set to grow over the next five years, though production levels pale in comparison to those of primary plastic production.

Annual November savings event, Black Friday, encourages excessive consumerism but this year organisations are promoting creative making, upcycling and repairing to bring communities together and reduce environmental damage.

Environmental compliance scheme Ecosurety has launched a £1 million fund to support projects tackling the environmental impacts of packaging, batteries or waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE).

The Federation of Small Businesses has called for businesses under 200 square feet in size to be exempt from the Scottish deposit return scheme for beverage containers due to space and staffing restrictions.

The Scottish Government has revealed measures for its upcoming Circular Economy Bill and will now invite responses to a consultation to gather public feedback on the proposals.

DS Smith has released the results of a packaging survey, revealing that six in ten European consumers would be happy to pay more for packaging with less plastic.

Aluminium recycling organisation Alupro warns that Scotland’s ‘all-in’ deposit return scheme could result in an extra 823 million plastic bottles being produced.