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Environment Agency seeks views on proposals to introduce new and update existing waste charges

The Environment Agency is encouraging the waste, water and farming sectors to have their say on charges associated with waste activities.

The 10-week consultation proposes to introduce new regulatory charges for specific waste activities as well as updating existing charging regimes from April 2025.

The Environment Agency is consulting on four key proposals:

• A waste levy which will enable the Environment Agency to increase waste enforcement activity by around 30%.
• New and updated hourly rates to ensure we can continue to recover the costs of regulatory activities.
• A waste fee for intervention to recover the cost of regulation where operators lack authorisation.
• Registration and compliance charges for waste exemptions. For farmers, we are proposing a reduced compliance charge for a set of 15 common on-farm waste exemptions.

England’s waste management industry generates nearly £7 billion annually, but organised criminals are becoming increasingly drawn to illegal waste activities which cause over £1 billion in damages each year, undercutting legitimate businesses.

The needs of the legitimate sector have also grown in recent years, making it necessary to review the service charges to ensure the Environment Agency can continue to deliver a robust and efficient regulatory service.

Proposals in this consultation will fund more regulatory work to target waste crime and the revenue generated through charges will support stronger enforcement, better customer support, improved digital systems and clearer guidance.

Illegally-dumped waste can impose significant costs on legitimate private landowners and rural businesses. The Environment Agency is committed to working closely with these groups to tackle the impacts of waste crime.

Steve Molyneux, Deputy Director of Waste and Resources Regulation at the Environment Agency, said:

It’s our job to be fair and transparent with the businesses we regulate for the work we do.

Waste exemption abuse across industry sectors, increasing costs of regulation and illegal waste activity, is making it harder to meet the cost of these challenges.

Our proposals will see more investment in our services, which is crucial in protecting legitimate businesses, tackling waste crime and reducing environmental damage. We encourage interested parties to respond to help shape the future of their industry.

This consultation runs from 11 November 2024 until midnight on 20 January 2025.

It can be accessed directly online.