{"id":524,"date":"2025-04-23T12:33:28","date_gmt":"2025-04-23T12:33:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.firstnationaltt.com\/?p=524"},"modified":"2025-04-28T01:31:23","modified_gmt":"2025-04-28T01:31:23","slug":"how-the-environment-agency-is-hampering-progress-on-reuse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.firstnationaltt.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/23\/how-the-environment-agency-is-hampering-progress-on-reuse\/","title":{"rendered":"How the Environment Agency is hampering progress on reuse"},"content":{"rendered":"
\u00a0<\/div>\n

\"Reuse<\/h4>\n

Craig Anderson, CEO of Reuse Network<\/a>, explains how he believes the Environment Agency\u2019s current regulations around reusable items are blocking environmental progress.<\/h4>\n

As the UK Government looks to advance its circular economy ambitions, a new roadmap by Reuse Network<\/a> is urging policymakers to recognise a vital but under-recognised sector: the nation\u2019s reuse charities.<\/p>\n

In a recent speech<\/a>, Environment Secretary Steve Reed highlighted how we throw away \u00a32.5 billion in usable furniture every year. For Reuse Network and its charity members, this figure highlights an urgent opportunity.<\/p>\n

We must take action to divert this furniture to low-income households that desperately need a bed to sleep on, a table to eat at, and a sofa to sit on.<\/p>\n

Removing barriers to reuse<\/h2>\n

\"Reuse<\/p>\n

Reuse Network\u2019s charity members exist to alleviate poverty across the UK by donating or selling essential household goods to people in need at a very low cost.<\/p>\n

They also offer meaningful employment opportunities and support services to marginalised groups.<\/p>\n

Additionally, they tackle climate change by reusing items that would otherwise end up in waste. These items include household furniture, electrical appliances, paint, baby equipment, and much more.<\/p>\n

Reuse Network is attempting to clear the many barriers currently prohibiting the reuse charity sector from operating at full potential and supporting the government\u2019s circular economy goals.<\/p>\n

Without policy reform and investment, the sector will struggle to continue delivering its crucial environmental and social benefits. Burdensome and flawed hazardous waste requirements stifle and prevent reuse.<\/p>\n

Current waste regulations wrongly categorise valuable, reusable items, and this approach from the Environment Agency is blocking environmental progress and stopping producer and retailer circular economy solutions and ambitions in their tracks.<\/p>\n

A key concern is the disparity in the application of permits required to handle different products and permits for sites collecting or producing different waste streams.<\/p>\n

Full waste management permits are currently required to handle whole intact items of upholstered furniture and Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) containing \u2018potential\u2019 Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs).<\/p>\n

These obligations apply even when goods are temporarily stored or assessed for reuse. Meanwhile, other waste streams, such as packaging or large WEEE, often bypass the need for such permits.<\/p>\n

This inconsistency illustrates a failure to reflect the actual environmental risk or potential value of the many second-hand goods in question and prevents reuse charities from collecting, storing, and redistributing these items efficiently and safely.<\/p>\n

Reuse is not historically a waste-inspired issue. There is a higher economic and social value to reuse, and second-hand is most often a second thought in waste policy. We need a different approach to waste and recycling versus product (and waste) for reuse.<\/p>\n

The Reuse Roadmap<\/h2>\n

\"Reuse\"<\/p>\n

Reuse is rooted in social impact and circular economy values that are poorly reflected in current waste policy frameworks.<\/p>\n

To help the government align its forthcoming Circular Economy Strategy with the needs of the reuse sector, Reuse Network has launched The Reuse Roadmap<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n

The roadmap seeks to gain more support for the sector through engagement on three key principles:<\/p>\n