Councils have had to remind residents what counts as essential waste as long queues form at Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs) which began to reopen across England this week.

Disruption to food waste and recycling collections services has increased since last week, according to the latest Covid-19 local authority impacts survey as local authorities report higher than normal volumes of waste.

A new study released last week (8 May) supported by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) suggests that regulatory barriers and technological ‘lock-in’ are hampering plastic packaging recycling efforts.

Almost half of councils have plans to reopen their Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs) within the next two weeks, according to the latest Covid-19 local authority impacts survey, while recycling collections have experienced a slight increase in disruption.

The government has stated that there is ‘no reason in law’ why Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs) shouldn’t be open and has yet again urged local authorities to reopen sites, issuing guidance on how to do so safely during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Local authority networks have released a guidance document on reopening Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs).

A number of Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs) across Greater Manchester are to reopen from this weekend (2 May) with some restrictions and social distancing measures in place.

Zero Waste Scotland has launched an online platform to match local authorities with private operators to pool resources together in efforts to maintain key services during the Covid-19 pandemic

Garden and bulky waste services remain disrupted and more Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs) close while core collections services continue to be maintained, according to the latest Covid-19 local authority impacts survey.

Robert Jenrick, the Secretary for Housing, Communities and Local Government, has said that local authorities will be asked to “plan the organised opening” of Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs) in the coming weeks.