Will the Minister make a statement on the use and extent of waste to energy solutions in waste disposal in Wales including to what extent those practices accord with Government policy and ambitions such as clean air and net zero?
The use of waste to energy is in line with our policy to move the management of waste up the waste hierarchy to achieve zero waste by 2050.
For wastes that cannot currently be recycled, we have been successful in moving away from landfill as an essential first step, in parallel with achieving world class performance in recycling. We have been clear that the use of waste to energy should be focused on material which cannot currently be recycled and that this is a transitional step.
As we continue to move up the waste hierarchy by further improving resource efficiency, repair, re-use and recycling, the need to utilise waste to energy decreases. In 2021, we introduced a moratorium on any future large-scale waste to energy developments, with the updated strategic assessment showing that the success of our recycling and the decrease in waste generated means no further large-scale waste to energy plants are required in Wales.
In addition, on 3rd July the UK Emissions Trading Scheme Authority (UK ETS) – the joint body comprising the UK Government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government and the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland – announced that the waste incineration and waste to energy sector will be added to the scheme in order to further incentivise the move towards net zero.