New waste legislation impacting UCL

As highlighted in UCL’s Circular Economy and Waste Strategy published last month, UK Government Waste legislation is becoming more stringent with the new “Simpler Recycling” legalisation coming into effect on 31 March. 

The new recycling laws aim to standardise and simplify waste collections across England. The legislation states as a minimum there must be four waste streams, general waste, food waste, paper and card, and all other dry recyclables.

Impact on UCL

At UCL we already have three core waste streams – ‘Dirty and wet rubbish’, ‘Only empty, clean and dry recycling’, and ‘Just food’ – and we are now working to improve our recycling segregation to include a new waste stream for paper and card. 

To comply with the new legislation – and in line with our Waste Strategy Objective to ensure that waste management facilities are consistent and of appropriate quality across the institution – we will be conducting an assessment of the university's current infrastructure, and considering the changes needed to further separate recyclable materials and how to effectively implement them.

We currently maintain a recycling rate of around 60% across our residential and non-residential estates. Improving our recycling infrastructure in line with this new legislation will help as we work towards an ultimate recycling target of 85% by 2034, demonstrating a year-on-year improvement.

What to expect

We will be working with our service partners to review buildings with a view to removing and replacing ageing and non-standard bins that do not meet the requirements of the new legislation. We will also be reviewing and redesigning waste labelling to ensure users are aware of what is disposed of in each bin.

We will share a further update with staff and students following these assessments and before any changes take place. 

Further information

For any queries or further information, please contact Ian Davison, Waste Manager, or Sustainable UCL.