The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) have announced a two-year exemption to the ban on sending biodegradable municipal waste to landfill.
Scotland’s ban on biodegradable municipal waste (BMW) being disposed of in landfill is still set to come into place on 1 January 2026, however, businesses and local authorities will be able to apply for an exemption 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.
According to a report by The Scotsman, SNP Climate Action and Energy Secretary, Gillian Martin, said there was a ‘temporary shortfall’ of energy-from-waste (EfW) capacity in Scotland, which has led to some parts of the waste sector identifying challenges in complying with the ban.
SEPA said that the decision was made to maintain environmental protections and minimise whole-system greenhouse gas emissions during the current capacity gap.
The amount of Scottish household waste sent to landfill in 2024 was 254,000 tonnes, a record low, according to statistics released by 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.