A round up of news from the waste and recycling sector, including new contracts for FCC Environment, plans for a recycling facility in South Gloucestershire, new JCB loaders for Countrystyle Recycling and the launch of a tool to help councils assess the impact of government waste policies.

MEPs in the European Parliament have approved plans to ban some single-use plastic products and increase the collection and recycling of plastic bottles, with legislation to be implemented in member states by 2021.

The Nappy (Environmental Standards) Bill has been launched in Parliament designed to promote the use of reusable nappies.

A new food waste reduction project has been launched by Zero Waste Scotland across Dundee, Angus and Fife as regions aim to meet the Scottish Government’s goal of reducing food waste by 33 per cent by 2025.

The government has warned waste exporters to expect delays at container ports such as the Port of Dover in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal, and says businesses should seek ‘alternative’ export, recovery or disposal routes for their waste.

Two new public drinking fountains have been installed in Bury, Greater Manchester, in a bid to reduce plastic pollution and encourage the uptake of free drinking water.

An inquiry has been launched by Parliament’s Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee into the effects of the new Resources and Waste Strategy on English local authorities.

“16 full-time civil servants” will fill the environmental governance gap in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a withdrawal agreement, a situation Environment Secretary Michael Gove has described as “sub-optimal”.

A Wiltshire-based man has been fined £200,000 for illegal waste operations at a number of waste sites, two of which were the locations of serious fires.

The Welsh Government has launched a consultation on Environmental Principles and Governance aimed at considering how to maintain coherent and effective environmental governance once the UK leaves the EU.