
“Waste diversion” refers to the process of redirecting waste away from landfills and incineration towards more sustainable waste management practices, such as recycling, composting, and reuse. The goal of waste diversion is to minimize the amount of waste that ends up in landfills, reduce environmental impact, conserve natural resources, and often reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with waste disposal. By diverting waste, communities and organizations can manage resources more efficiently and promote a more sustainable approach to waste management.
Based on UK statistics on waste, the UK generated 222.2 million tonnes of total waste in 2018, an increase of 1.8% from the 218.3 million tonnes generated in 2016. England contributed significantly to this total, generating 187.3 million tonnes of waste in 2018, which represents an increase of 1.4% from 2016 and accounts for 84% of the UK’s total waste. These statistics highlight the importance of waste diversion in managing the growing volume of waste and mitigating its environmental impacts. By improving waste diversion practices, the UK can address the increasing waste generation and enhance its efforts towards sustainability and resource conservation.
The Carbon Waste and Resources Metric (Carbon WARM) was created by WRAP at DEFRA’s request to monitor and evaluate the Greenhouse Gas emissions impact, measured as carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e), of the Resources and Waste Strategy. (Research date is 2019-2020.) This metric is designed to complement traditional weight-based monitoring and evaluation by emphasizing the environmental (climate) impacts of waste and resource management, and it replaces the previous metric published in 2012.
All landfill emissions were supplied directly by DEFRA based on the MELMod landfill emissions model and are the same as the gas emissions factors supplied by BEIS.
Greenhouse gas emissions values (“carbon values”) are used across UK government for valuing impacts on GHG emissions resulting from policy interventions. They represent a monetary value that society places on one tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent (£/tCO2e).
The monetary value of carbon comes from “Valuation of greenhouse gas emissions: for policy appraisal and evaluation” (published in 2021).
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/valuing-greenhouse-gas-emissions-in-policy-appraisal/valuation-of-greenhouse-gas-emissions-for-policy-appraisal-and-evaluation
Carbon values in £2020 prices per tonne of CO2 for 2023 is £252 and per kg of CO2 is £0.252.
At the Bronze level, you should calculate the approximate carbon footprint, as each waste produces different levels of carbon emissions.
The average Carbon footprint for Landfill is 347.25 kg.CO2e per tonne and Carbon values in £2020 prices per kg of CO2 is £0.252.
Thus, the headline value is
347.25kg.CO2e*£0.252=£87.5 per tonne of waste.
Assume as an organization you diverted 100 tonne of waste from landfill and you don’t know material of the waste. Thus, you can approximately calculate monetized value of the waste diversion from landfill as (100tonne*347.25 kg.CO2e) *£0.252=£8,750.7
At the Silver level, you should calculate your approximate carbon footprint, by material of waste, as each material produces different levels of carbon emissions.
Table 1 shows the results as a footprint for different materials.
Table 1 Carbon WARM, unnormalized values (kg.CO2e/tonne)
Material | Landfill – Carbon footprint |
Food | 627 |
Garden | 579 |
Food and garden | 592 |
Paper and board | 1042 |
Steel | 9 |
Aluminium | 9 |
Mixed(cans) | 9 |
Glass | 9 |
Textiles | 445 |
Dense plastics | 9 |
Film | 9 |
Wood | 828 |
Average | 347.25 |
These numbers likely represent the amount of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions associated with each material. The higher the value, the greater the environmental impact. For example, paper and board have a relatively high footprint compared to dense plastics or glass.
Assume and as an organization you diverted 100 tonne of food from landfill and 100 tonne of wood. Thus, you can approximately calculate monetized value of the waste diversion from landfill as ((100tonne*627 kg.CO2e) +(100tonne*828 kg.CO2e)) *£0.252=£36,666
Value Type: | Activity |
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This is the type of value. Some values are outcomes, which means many different interventions might lead to them, others are specific interventions that have a set value. |
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Measure Up focuses on empowering you to numerically measure the impact you’re having. We recommend that numeric reports are backed up with stories and other types of evidence to help illustrate, in human terms, the impact that’s being made on individuals.
We recommend seeking consent from participants in your intervention to collect and tell their story. This should include a little background on the participant, a summing up of life before the intervention, the human impact of the intervention, and the longer term (if known) impact on the person’s life outside of, and after, the intervention.
Providing photographs, audio recordings, video interviews or even artefacts from the intervention (for example, writing, paintings, music from creative interventions) can add more to the story, and convey the emotional impact of interventions more directly.
In some cases it’s appropriate to anonymise or abbreviate the personal information of case study participants. No story should be published or shared without the recorded consent of the individual(s) it concerns. Individuals continue to own the rights to their stories and if they request you stop sharing the story or making it available online you should do so promptly and without need for justification.
Measure Up is open, collaborative and transparent. If you have any suggestions or feedback on our pragmatic, recommended approach to measuring and valuing social value, including wellbeing, economic, and fiscal impact, and effects on our environment, please get in touch so we can share and discuss this at our next Advisory Group meeting.
We want to empower anyone to perform and improve their impact measurement – without needing a degree in economics.
If you need any more help, or just someone to do the legwork for you we can help signpost you to software, training and consultancy to help you get to grips with the impact you’re having and value you are creating.