Residual Waste in England Falls to 58.4 Million Tonnes
England’s residual waste continues to edge down, with the latest Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) estimates putting the 2024 total at 58.4 million tonnes. That’s a modest 0.5% drop year-on-year, but a more meaningful 9.3% reduction compared to 2019.
On a per-person basis, the shift is clearer. Residual waste now sits at 996 kg per person, down 1.6% from 2023 and 13% lower than five years ago. The direction is steady, even if the pace isn’t dramatic.
Landfill Decline Continues But Incineration Fills the Gap
The most notable structural change sits behind the headline figures.
- Landfill volumes have fallen sharply: down 16.8% since 2019, from 45.5 to 37.8 million tonnes
- Waste sent to incineration (including EfW) has increased by 16.9% over the same period
- Per person, landfill dropped from 808 kg to 645 kg, while incineration rose from 287 kg to 322 kg
In short, less waste is going to landfill but much of it is being redirected rather than eliminated.
David Gudgeon of Reconomy Connect describes the trend as progress, but not without compromise. Lower contamination levels are helping more materials stay within the system, yet the growing reliance on incineration points to a deeper limitation in how waste is currently managed.
A Closer Look: Waste Without Major Mineral Materials
Strip out major mineral waste (construction-heavy materials), and the picture tightens further.
In 2024:
- Residual waste excluding mineral materials fell to 31.4 million tonnes
- That’s a 2.6% drop year-on-year and 3% lower than 2019
- Per person, this equates to 535 kg, down 6.9% over five years
Landfill use within this category has also reduced significantly:
- From 13.4 million tonnes in 2019 to 10.8 million tonnes in 2024 (-19.2%)
At the same time, incineration continues to rise at a similar rate to the overall waste stream.
Municipal Waste: Flat in the Short Term, Shifting Long Term
At a municipal level, volumes have largely plateaued but the underlying trends mirror the national picture.
- 26.1 million tonnes of municipal residual waste in 2024
- Effectively unchanged from 2023 (- 0.1%)
- Slightly down from 2019 (- 1.1%)
Per person, municipal waste now stands at 445 kg, continuing a gradual decline.
Where things get more interesting is in how that waste is treated:
- Landfill use fell by 23.3% (from 9.9 to 7.6 million tonnes)
- Incineration increased by 23.1% (from 13.6 to 16.8 million tonnes)
- Waste exported for energy recovery dropped sharply down 39.6% since 2019
The shift is consistent: landfill is being phased down quickly, but recovery routes are increasingly dominated by domestic incineration capacity.
Policy Pressure and What Comes Next
Recent policy changes are starting to influence the flow of residual waste. The rollout of mandatory food waste collections under Simpler Recycling in England is expected to reduce the volume of material entering both landfill and incineration streams.
There are also early signals that broader circular economy measures, particularly around textiles, could further impact residual waste volumes, depending on how they are implemented.
What This Means for UK Businesses
For businesses, these figures aren’t just background statistics; they reflect how the cost and structure of waste management is shifting in real time.
Landfill is becoming less dominant, but that doesn’t automatically translate into efficiency. In many cases, residual waste is simply being redirected into incineration streams which still carries cost, compliance pressure and lost resource value.
What’s changing in practice:
- Residual waste is getting more expensive to ignore, tighter regulation and treatment costs are pushing businesses to reduce general waste volumes
- Segregation matters more than ever, lower contamination directly impacts whether materials are recycled or lost to incineration
- Food waste separation is now a baseline requirement under Simpler Recycling, not a ‘nice to have’
- Inefficient waste setups are being exposed, especially in high-volume sectors like hospitality, retail and construction
There’s also a quieter shift happening: businesses that actively reduce residual waste are not only lowering disposal costs, but also gaining more predictable, controllable waste spend.
Where the Opportunity Sits
The data shows a system in transition, and that creates a clear opportunity for businesses willing to act early.
Reducing residual waste isn’t about overhauling everything overnight. In most cases, it comes down to tightening the basics:
- separating key waste streams properly
- adjusting collection frequency
- removing unnecessary general waste capacity
- aligning services with actual waste output
Small operational changes here tend to compound quickly, both in compliance and cost term
Work With Affordable Waste Management
At Affordable Waste Management, we help UK businesses cut down residual waste without overcomplicating the process.
- Waste collection from £1.14 per day
- Free bins and fast account setup, typically within 24 hours
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- Full support with documentation and Duty of Care compliance
If your current setup is generating more residual waste than it should, we’ll identify where it’s happening, and fix it.
Get a quote today and take control of your waste costs.