Shetland Islands Council (SIC) recently announced that it had successfully achieved its goal of reducing the amount of waste heading to its landfills. The Council was successful in doing so as a result of the local energy plant which burns waste.
Other Councils in Scotland who have been less successful in reducing waste and who are struggling to meet recycling and waste reduction targets set by the Scottish Government may have to pay large fines.
Shetland decided to deal with waste in the 90s by building an “energy recovery plant”. The plant was a more economical alternative to shipping waste elsewhere for recycling.
Mary Lisk, the environmental management officer for the SIC, said: “We have used a different strategy to address the national problem, while other authorities are tearing their hair out.”
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) released figures on recycling across the country earlier this week which indicated that overall, Scotland had achieved its target of recycling 30 per cent of its waste.
For Shetland, targets are slightly different. The SIC aims recycle 13.5 per cent of its waste, although residents currently recycle at a higher rate (19.5 per cent). In addition, the SIC aims to send 65 to 70 per cent of its domestic waste to the energy recovery plant where it is used to heat homes.
“In Shetland we are well within the target set for landfill, so we have no chance of being fined. We are doing well, but we are doing it a different way. Shetland has found its own local solution,” Ms Lisk said.
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