The Carbon Trust has announced plans to launch the ‘world’s first international waste standard’ for organisations wishing to manage and reduce their waste.
The Carbon Trust Waste Standard, to be launched later this year, will require organisations to measure, manage and reduce their solid and hazardous waste.
To achieve the standard, organisations will need to demonstrate that waste streams are being reduced every year, or disposed of more effectively, through increased reuse, recycling or energy recovery. The trust said it believes the standard will help to ‘fundamentally change business’s sustainability benchmarks and influence their investors, stakeholders and customers’.
The new Waste Standard will also include a qualitative assessment to show that waste is being managed responsibly or prevented. This will include considerations outside of an organisation’s direct control, such as having a diligent procurement policy for goods and waste management services, or looking at downstream impacts through products and packaging.
Other Carbon Trust standards
The announcement of the Carbon Trust Waste Standard coincides with the fifth anniversary of the launch of the Carbon Trust’s Carbon Standard. According to the trust, this has helped ‘thousands of businesses’ manage and reduce carbon, with certifications being awarded to organisations around the world.
Together with the recent launch of the Carbon Trust Water Standard, the Carbon Trust Waste Standard hopes to help businesses and public sector organisations take a more ‘robust’ approach to resource management.
Speaking of the new certification, Tom Delay, Chief Executive of the Carbon Trust, said: “For the past five years we’ve worked with companies across the world to cut carbon emissions and it is now time for us to apply this expertise to the global problem of waste. The new Waste Standard, combined with Carbon Standard and Water Standard, will help organisations take a more stringent approach to resources so they can operate in a more efficient, cost-effective way, as well as preserving global resources.”
Read more about the Carbon Trust.
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How will the government and DMOs address the challenges of including glass in DRS while ensuring a level playing field across the UK?
There's no easy solution to include glass in the DRS while maintaining a level playing field. Potential approaches include a phased introduction of glass, potentially with higher deposits to reflect its logistical challenges. The government and DMOs could incentivise innovation in glass packaging design and subsidise dedicated return points for glass-handling. Exemptions for smaller businesses unable to handle glass might also be necessary. Any successful solution will likely blend several approaches. It must address the differing priorities of devolved administrations, balance environmental benefits with logistical and cost implications, and be supported by robust consumer education campaigns emphasizing the importance of glass recycling.