Scottish household waste sent to landfill was at a record low in 2024, ahead of December’s ban on landfilling biodegradable municipal waste.
The amount of Scottish household waste sent to landfill in 2024 was 254,000 tonnes, a decrease of 154,000 tonnes (37.7%) from 2023, according to statistics released by the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA).
This continues a long-term trend in Scotland where the amount of household waste sent to landfill has decreased by 82.5% (1.2 million tonnes) since 2011.
Scotland is set to introduce a ban on sending biodegradable municipal waste (BMW), such as food waste, garden waste, and paper or cardboard, to landfill from 31 December 2025. However, businesses and local authorities will be able to apply for an exemption from the ban for two years.
In a statement, SEPA said not all required treatment capacity and logistics will be in place by the end of this year to enforce the ban.
The statistics also show Scottish households generated 2.32 million tonnes of waste in 2024, a 10,000-tonne (0.4%) increase from 2023.
Scotland’s household waste recycling was 44.3%, an increase of 0.7 percentage points from the 43.5% rate achieved in 2023. The amount of household waste recycled between 2023 and 2024 also increased by 21,000 tonnes (2.1%) to 1.02 million tonnes.
In 2024, most of the household waste diverted from landfill was managed by incineration. 853,000 tonnes of waste were incinerated compared to 746,000 tonnes in 2023.
The total amount of Scottish household waste diverted from landfill was 1.04 million tonnes, an increase of 143,000 tonnes (16.1%) from 2023.
The amount of waste produced by Scottish households that was recycled or reused in 2024 increased by 3.1% to 611,000 tonnes compared to the previous year.
Of the material categories of waste recycled or reused in 2024, wood waste increased by 14.3% (9,900 tonnes), which was the largest change compared with 2023. Metallic waste was the second highest change, with an increase of 7,700 tonnes.
The largest material category of Scottish household waste recycled or reused in 2024 was Paper and cardboard, which accounted for 25.2% (167,000 tonnes) of the total amount.