NAWDO press statement – NAWDO welcomes ETS expansion delay
26th August 2026
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NAWDO welcomes today’s statement from DESNZ that the expansion of the UK’s Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) to Energy from Waste (EfW) will no longer take place in 2028 and is to be delayed.
As it stood, the proposal would have put immense strain on local authority finances. Currently, many local authorities send much of their residual waste to EfW facilities for energy recovery. This method of disposal for waste often represents a significant proportion of total disposal costs for collected waste and offers the best environmental and economic outcomes of the current options available for disposing of non-recyclable waste.
Local authorities have very limited control over the content and volume of waste they are required to manage and have limited resources to remove carbon-heavy products or manage the resulting carbon emissions generated. NAWDO’s members have a statutory duty to dispose of residual waste presented to them regardless of the amount and composition, thereby serving a public and environmental health function.
Whilst NAWDO recognises that it is vital that we all reduce our carbon emissions in response to the climate emergency, it is unlikely that this policy will effectively decarbonise the waste sector as there is currently no route to the application of carbon allowances directly incentivising consumer consumption patterns.
Going forward, Government should only reschedule the introduction of this policy when there is a system-wide plan for decarbonising waste which addresses the need for new technology and infrastructure, and provides support for practical actions that are within local authorities’ power to implement. Above all, other solutions which incentivise producers to reduce the fossil carbon content of products should be implemented before any new timelines for this proposal is set.
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