Over the last two years the European Union has outlined specific directives for its member nations to reduce waste and increase recycling rates. The rules have been effective in some cases as countries in the EU have raised their recycling rates and many have decreased the size of their landfills. Even though most countries have made some strides towards these goals, there are many, like the United Kingdom who is still lagging behind in their efforts to achieve these goals. Because of this there are some within the EU who believe that the nation needs to do more to increase recycling rates and decrease waste. Since the Copenhagen summit was such an epic failure it has now become clearer to the EU that any changes that are made will have to come from within.
One suggestion is that the EU form an agency which is dedicated solely to overseeing the waste management and recycling industries in the EU. The European Commission made a report which outlined the reasons that this committee is needed and exactly the things that it may be able to help or change. The report indicated that illegal dumping was still happening on a wide scale basis and without an agency to oversee this it is likely to continue at a high rate. The twenty seven nation EU produces more than two and a half billion tonnes of waste each year much of which is still being dumped into landfills or being dumped illegally. The report claims that a dedicated agency would more effectively be able to regulate this type of behavior.
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