Quality Report for Household Waste Generated and Managed in Scotland 2024
An Official Statistics Publication for Scotland
Published on 28th October 2025 9:30 AM
Introduction
This report describes the methodologies to produce summary household waste data for Scotland for the 2024 calendar year. The report should be used alongside the 2024 Household waste data official statistics and associated data tables.
The 2024 data are presented as follows:
The Household waste data for Scotland and associated data tables are presented in a summary and commentary document. This narrative describes the major trends and provides an interpretation of the data.
Scotland’s Environment Household Waste Discover Data tool presents the waste from household sources in an interactive and visual format and is found on Scotland’s Environment web.
Scotland’s Environment Waste Discover Data tool presents the Waste From all Sources (WFAS) in an interactive and visual format and is found on Scotland’s Environment web. This tool covers the total waste managed, whether it be waste from households, waste from construction and demolition, or waste from commerce and industry. This tool includes waste generated and waste management methods including waste recycled, incinerated, composted and waste landfilled.
In some cases, the quantities of household waste and WFAS are counter intuitive. For example, there may be more household waste than WFAS for a given reporting category. This is a product of using different datasets and corresponding methodologies which are not comparable. If such an inconsistency exists, attempts have been made in this document to outline possible reasons for the inconsistency and steps that are planned to address the shortcomings.
Unlike the WFAS statistics, in which no attempt is made to balance the waste generated with waste managed, the household waste generated and waste managed are balanced, except for waste sent to interim storage. For example, in the household statistic, ‘incineration’ is net inputs to incinerators to avoid double-counting of incinerator outputs. SEPA in partnership with Zero Waste Scotland and the Scottish Government is currently reviewing Scotland’s waste data strategy. Part of this review is to identify and address gaps in the reporting dataset.
Appendix 1 provides a fuller description of the WasteDataFlow data source including any links to return forms and guidance.
Appendix 2 and Appendix 3 list the waste reporting categories used in the household waste methodology.
Appendix 4 lists the carbon factors used by Zero Waste Scotland (ZWS) to produce the carbon metric.
Appendix 5 lists the waste composition factors used by ZWS and SEPA to produce the carbon metric.
Appendix 6 provides a glossary of terms
Appendix 7 provides a list of acronyms.
Revisions Policy
Revisions could occur for various reasons, including when data from third parties are unavailable or provisional at the time of publishing or if there are subsequent methodological improvements or refinements.
The figures are accurate at the time of publication. However, the data may be updated if further revisions are necessary. Normally, in line with SEPA’s published corrections policy, revisions will be published concurrent with the next release.
Where there have been changes in methodology for the waste data tables, the complete dataset is revised for all years to ensure that comparisons between years are valid.
Progress against Targets
Introduction
The Scottish Government’s Making Things Last – A Circular Economy Strategy for Scotland sets out the Scottish Government’s vision for a zero waste society. This vision describes a Scotland where all waste is seen as a resource, where waste is minimised, where valuable resources are not disposed of in landfills, and where most waste is sorted, leaving only limited amounts to be treated.
This policy document sets a number of objective and measurable targets for tracking progress against the objectives specified in the Zero Waste Plan (2010). Some of these targets are derived from EU directives such as the Waste Framework Directive. A summary of these targets for household waste are provided in Table 1 below.
The Circular Economy and Waste Route Map to 2030, Scotland’s strategic plan to deliver its sustainable resource and circular economy ambitions, was published in December 2024. Its actions are complemented by provisions in the Circular Economy (Scotland) Act 2024. The Act establishes the legislative framework to support Scotland’s transition to a zero waste and circular economy, significantly increase reuse and recycling rates, and modernise and improve waste and recycling services.
Recycling/composting and preparing for re-use of household waste
The method used to prepare the household waste recycling/composting and preparing for re-use figure is based on household waste reported in WasteDataFlow. The total waste reused, composted, and recycled for all 32 Scottish local authorities is calculated as depicted in Figure 1 below.
The meaning of household waste changed in 2011 with the introduction of the Zero Waste Plan. The household waste recycling figures use the revised meaning for 2011 – 2024. Changes in the definition of household waste include:
- compost like output from mechanical and biological treatment (MBT) of household wastes previously counted as recycled was re-classified as ‘Other recovery’;
- metals and ash from incineration previously counted as recycled was re-classified as ‘Other recovery’;
- street-sweeping, gully waste, healthcare waste, and beach-cleansing waste were re-classified from household to commercial waste.
- waste that failed to meet the publicly available specification (PAS) standard for composting and anaerobic digestion was classified as ‘Other recovery’.
In 2022, the definition of recycling further changed to include metals from incineration.
The preparing for re-use and the recycling by weight of waste materials such as paper, metal, plastic, and glass from household waste and similar
Previously, we reported to Eurostat under Article 11(2)(a) of the Waste Framework Directive (Directive 2008/98/EC), which specifies that member states must meet a recycling target of 50% by weight for the recycling of waste materials such as paper, metal, plastic, and glass from households. Commonly known as the “Waste from households (WfH)” calculation, Defra continue to publish these data for the UK and devolved nations as part of their UK Statistics on Waste.
The WfH calculation is depicted in Figure 2 below. The key differences between the Scotland household waste recycling rate and the Waste from households recycling rate are summarised in Table 2 below. Further information about differences between the national recycling measures of the four UK countries may be found in the Recycling Explainer published by Defra in consultation with the environmental agencies of the four UK countries.
\[ Percentage\ household\ waste\ recycled\ =\ \frac{Household\ waste \ recycled}{Household\ waste\ generated} \]
\[ WfH\ generated\ (tonnes)\ =\ Household\ waste\\ generated\ -\ Soils\ and\ Construction\ waste\ recycled \] \[ Percentage\ WfH\ recycled\ =\ \frac{(Household\ waste\ recycled\ \\- Soils\ and\ Construction\ waste\ recycled generated\ \\+\ waste\ composted\ at\ non\ PAS\ facilities) *\ 100} {WfH\ Generated} \]
Notes:
A methodological change was made in 2022 to include metals from incineration bottom
ash sent for recycling as part of the Scotland’s national household waste recycling rate. Previously, these
wastes were counted as Other Diversion from Landfill
Household waste
Introduction
This section describes how we report on household waste generated in Scotland; and Scottish household waste managed in Scotland or elsewhere. Data are taken from all 32 Scottish local authority returns using the web-based reporting tool WasteDataFlow (WDF). Further details of the WDF dataset can be found in Appendix 1. Throughout this section reference is made to question numbers on WDF.
In 2024 local authorities submitted returns annually. All returns were checked and verified by SEPA staff for data entry errors, consistency with previous WDF returns and consistency with the site returns dataset.
All waste collected is reported in WDF in the same return period in which it is sent to management. This allows balancing of the waste generated and waste managed for a period. The waste generated figures may include treated waste stockpiled prior to final management. The waste managed figures exclude treated waste held in stockpile at the end of the reporting year.
Methodology
WasteDataFlow Question 100
Local authorities report waste managed in WDF using Question 100 (Q100). Data entry is via building a graphical ‘tree’ that depicts the movement of waste in a chain. Each ‘branch’ of the tree is associated with a waste facility and tonnage inputs to and outputs from each facility are reported. Question 100 covers the following waste management categories:
Wastes sent direct to landfill, incineration and composting facilities, and waste sent to the same facilities following the sorting/treatment of mixed wastes e.g. at a materials recovery facility (MRF) or mechanical biological treatment (MBT) plant
Segregated recyclates sent direct to reprocessors and reuse facilities, and waste sent to the same facilities following the sorting/treatment of mixed wastes (e.g. MRFs, MBT)
A “primary facility” in Q100 is a facility where the authority records waste as sent direct from collection. When entering data, the input tonnages to the facility at this level are broken down into three waste sources by local authorities: Household, Commercial, Industrial. The household tonnages are directly obtained from the data for these facilities.
Where the facility is not a primary facility (e.g. the waste sent to landfill is recorded as an output from another facility such as a materials recycling facility), the household waste tonnage is not specifically recorded. In this instance the household waste was calculated by applying the percentage household waste at the primary level in the tree to the total tonnage of waste sent to the facility. For example, if waste inputs to a MRF facility are 80% household wastes, the output rejects from the MRF sent to landfill will be designated as 80% household in origin.
Waste categories
A list of SEPA reporting categories and corresponding WDF waste types are provided in Appendix 2 and Appendix 3.
For simplicity, in the official statistics commentary document for household waste generated and managed, the statistical waste categories “Metallic wastes, ferrous“, “Metallic wastes, non-ferrous”, and “Metallic wastes, mixed ferrous and non-ferrous” have been combined into the one category of “Metallic wastes” . Similarly the statistical waste categories “Mineral waste from construction and demolition” and “Soils” have been combined into one “Construction and soils” category. The Household Waste Discover Data tool retains all the reporting categories.
Household waste generated
Household waste generated were taken from the household tonnage inputs to primary level facilities in Q100.
Household waste landfilled
Household waste sent to landfill was derived from the waste recorded as sent to a landfill facility in Q100, either directly or as secondary outputs to landfill following the treatment of waste.
Household waste recovered by incineration, recovered by co-incineration, disposed by incineration
The quantity of household waste incinerated reported in the Household Waste Discover Data tool and in the official statistics commentary document for household waste generated and managed is the net tonnage input to the incinerator. Note that this differs from the WFAS Waste Discover Data tool, in which gross inputs to incineration1 are reported.
Incineration tonnages were allocated to the incineration by recovery category where the incineration facility met the R1 incineration efficiency as set out in Annex II of the Waste Framework Directive criteria . Similarly, where waste was incinerated in a co-incineration process, tonnages were allocated to the incineration by co-incineration category in the data tables. Where the incinerator was not recognised as meeting R1 incineration efficiency, the incineration tonnages were allocated to the incineration by disposal category. It was assumed that all waste exported outside the UK was sent for incineration by recovery. For waste exported to an England incinerator, where the R1 incinerator status was undetermined, it was assumed the waste was sent to incineration by disposal or incineration by co-incineration.
Household waste recycled
The quantity of household waste recycled is the net sum of household waste recorded as sent to reprocessor facilities in Q100. This includes waste sent direct to a reprocessor from collection and also the recyclable materials sent to a reprocessor following sorting of mixed wastes at a waste treatment facility (e.g. MRFs, MBT).
Under Scotland’s Zero Waste Plan the compost-like output (CLO) from the mechanical biological treatment of household waste, and any recycled incinerator bottom ash from the incineration of household waste do not count towards household waste recycling targets and are excluded from household waste recycling figures but they are included under “other diversion from landfill” unless these materials are landfilled.
Household waste prepared for reuse
The quantity of household waste prepared for reuse is the net sum of household waste recorded as sent to reuse facilities in Q100, either directly or as outputs from a sorting facility.
Household organic waste recycled through biological treatment
The quantity of household organic waste recycled through biological treatment is the net sum of household waste recorded as sent to organic recycling facilities in Q100. There are three categories of organic recycling facilities in Q100: windrow composting, in-vessel composting, and anaerobic digestion facilities.
In 2024 only PAS100 / PAS110 accredited facilities were considered for the recycling data in line with Scotland’s Cicular Economy policy: Making Things Last. This change stems from a Scottish Government policy to improve the quality of recycling, first introduced with the publication of the Zero Waste Plan in 2010. Waste composted or digested that has not reached the quality standards set by PAS 100 / PAS 110 and diverted from landfill was counted under “Other diversion from landfill”.
Household waste managed by other methods
Recycled bottom ash from the incineration of household waste (excluding metals recycled) do not count towards household waste recycling targets and are excluded from household waste recycling figures. These materials have been allocated into the “Other diversion from landfill” category in the household waste data tables. Also included in this category is any process loss during waste treatment, and process loss of organic waste composted in which the compost product is disposed, and compost-like outputs from mechanical biological treatment which are sent for recycling
Final destination reporting
The geographic allocation (Scotland / Outwith Scotland) for household waste recycling / disposal / recovery relies on the accurate reporting of the final destination of waste materials. For example, a final destination for glass bottles would be the site where the bottles are reprocessed into new materials. A final destination for rejected material from a MRF might be landfill or incineration.
SEPA’s WDF guidance requires authorities to report the final destination of the waste in Q100 (i.e. the facility where waste is recycled, recovered or disposed). Waste often goes through a complex chain of sites before reaching its final destination. This, together with the reluctance of some operators to report where waste is sent due to commercial confidentiality, means many authorities struggle to obtain final destination information for the WDF report.
Although the roll out of Q100 has improved final destination reporting, many authorities still continue to report MRFs as final destinations. The geographic information for household waste managed, in particular the household waste recycled, should therefore be treated with caution in the waste data tables. It is anticipated that the UK digital waste tracking service, when implemented, will provide more detailed and accurate data on the destination of waste managed by local authorities.
2011 - 2013 Composting and Other Diversion
In 2014, the meaning of recycling changed in Scotland. After 2014 waste that was composted at PAS100 / PAS110 certified facilities counted towards recycling, and waste sent to facilities which were not certified did not count towards recycling but were part of the “Other diversion from landfill” category.
From 2014 to 2019, the old and new methods were published in the statistical bulletin side by side. However, as we move further away from the old composting measure, it becomes less important, and a back series is helpful for understanding changes over a long period of time. For 2011 – 2013 the waste that met the PAS 100 / PAS 110 standard was modelled to produce a back series. For each authority, the proportion of waste that was sent to a PAS 100 / PAS 110 facility on average in 2014 - 2015 was applied to the waste sent for composting for each of the years 2011, 2012 and 2013. Further information about the formula for calculating the non-PAS tonnes and the factors used for each authority may be found in the 2021 household waste quality report.
Carbon Metric
The carbon metric is a measure of the whole-life carbon impacts of waste, from resource extraction and manufacturing emissions, right through to waste management emissions, regardless of where in the world these impacts occur. The carbon impact of waste was developed by Zero Waste Scotland (https://www.zerowastescotland.org.uk/content/what-carbon-metric).
Calculation of the carbon metric depends upon the waste category and how it is managed. The waste category for each management type is multiplied by the carbon factor listed in Appendix 4. The carbon factors have, for each year up to 2021, been provided by Zero Waste Scotland, and the methodology on how they are produced may be found in the carbon metric technical reports on Zero Waste Scotland’s web site. For 2022, 2023, and 2024, the carbon factors for 2021 were used. This was done as year-on-year changes in factors are relatively minor; for example, the total carbon emissions per tonne of Animal and mixed food waste over the last five years (sum of emissions from waste generated, recycled, incinerated, landfilled or diverted) varied by less than 0.3%; and resources could be focused on developing factors for Scotland’s Waste Environmental Footprint Tool (SWEFT).
The Household and similar wastes category, which comprises mixed residual waste, was first divided up into individual waste compositional categories before multiplying by the relevant carbon factor. This was achieved by using the composition of residual waste published in Zero Waste Scotland’s 2014 waste composition study. Not all Scottish local authorities were included in the 2014 waste composition study. Therefore, the average waste composition across all Scottish authorities was applied to each authority. It should be noted that the waste composition for authorities can vary, depending on the amount of source segregated collections undertaken in a local authority area. Therefore, care should be taken when comparing local authority carbon metric data.
It is almost certain that, due to the introduction of source segregated food waste collections, the food waste composition of residual waste will have decreased since 2014. To account for this, the amount of food waste over segregated and residual waste streams was assumed to be constant over any year. For each year, the amount of food waste in the residual waste stream was then calculated by subtracting the amount of waste contained within segregated waste stream for that year from the amount of food waste across both the segregated and residual waste streams in 2014. The final waste composition used for the carbon metric each year is list in Appendix 5. It should be noted that, due to the infrequency of waste composition studies, the variation due to sampling error for waste composition is unknown. Zero Waste Scotland has a planned program for regular waste composition studies which will provide a better estimate of year to year variation of the waste composition, and consequently, the variation in the carbon metric analysis.
Appendix 1
Datasets used in the 2024 methodology
In 2024, all 32 Scottish local authorities reported on a quarterly or annual basis using an electronic return system called WasteDataFlow (WDF). WDF is a UK wide system administered by Defra. Local authorities are responsible for entering data, which cannot be modified by SEPA. Data entry is via a series of numbered questions.
In 2024 there was a 100% response rate. SEPA reviewed the annual data using a verification tool and informed local authorities where possible of inconsistencies which required checking. Data checking included the consistency of reported tonnages collected and managed for residual waste, segregated recycling, and organic wastes.
Where waste is reported per person, such as waste generated per person and carbon impact (tCO2e per person), the population data was sourced from Scotland’s Mid-2024 Population Estimates Scotland.
Appendix 2
Segregated Household waste categories for SEPA reporting and WasteDataFlow
Appendix 3
Mixed household waste categories for SEPA reporting and WasteDataFlow
Appendix 4
Carbon Metric Factors 2011 - 2024
All factors in units of CO2eq per tonne of material
Notes:
For the 2024 dataset, the 2021 factors were used in the carbon metric to calculate tCO2e. Specific factors for 2024 were not developed as year-on-year changes in factors are relatively minor.
Appendix 5
Waste composition for carbon metric, 2011 - 2024
Notes:
The average waste composition across all Scottish authorities was applied to each authority. It should be noted that the waste composition for authorities can vary, depending on the amount of source segregated collections undertaken in a local authority area. Therefore, care should be taken when comparing local authority carbon metric data.
Appendix 6. Glossary
Glossary of terms
Anaerobic digestion a process commonly used to break down biodegradable wastes (e.g. food and green wastes) in the absence of oxygen.
BSI PAS 100 / 110 a national compost/digestate benchmark that specifies the minimum requirements for the process of composting/anaerobic digestion, the selection of material from which compost/digestate is made, and standards for the compost/digestate product quality. PAS 100 is applicable to composting facilities while PAS 110 is applicable to anaerobic digestion facilities. The use of this standard to improve the quality of compost/digestate in Scotland became Scottish Government policy in 2011, with 2014 being the first year it was applied to the household waste official statistics.
Carbon metric a measure of the whole-life carbon impacts of waste, from resource extraction and manufacturing emissions, right through to waste management emissions, regardless of where in the world these impacts occur. The carbon impact of waste was developed by Zero Waste Scotland.
Compost like output partially digested waste outputs generated from the biological treatment of residual municipal solid wastes at a process that involves both mechanical and biological treatment. Outputs typically do not conform to composting standards such as PAS 100/110.
Household waste waste generated by households (see full definition in Paragraph 1.2 of the Zero Waste Plan - guidance for local authorities on the WasteDataFlow web site).
In-vessel composting A group of methods which confine the composting of organic waste materials within a building, container, or vessel.
Kerbside Collection a service provided by local authorities to households, of collecting and disposing of household waste and recyclables, which are presented to the householdholders on the kerb. It includes individual household waste containers, as well as communal bin stores provided to multiple tenants.
Mechanical biological treatment a type of waste processing plant that combines sorting and biological treatment.
Materials recovery facility A waste management plant which separates recyclable materials from mixed wastes.
- household waste treated by incineration, including any incinerator bottom ash (excluding metals) that is recycled,
- weight loss that occurs during the composting/digestion of waste to PAS 100/110 and non-PAS 100/110 compost/digestate where the output is landfilled,
- Compost-like outputs that is not landfilled,
- weight loss that occurs during mechanical and biological treatment processes (e.g. production of CLO and RDF),
- from 2014, any waste composted/digested that has not reached the quality standards set by PAS 100/110 and is not landfilled.
Segregated recyclate waste materials collected for recycling separately from residual waste collections. This includes collection of single materials as well as co-mingled materials.
tCO2e tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, which is a measure that allows the comparison of greenhouse gases relative to one unit of CO2.
Waste composted waste recycled by biological treatment through composting at a composting plant or through digestion at an anaerobic digestion facility.
Waste generated waste collected by or on behalf of local authorities that is managed within the relevant reporting year. This might include treated waste stockpiled prior to final management.
Waste landfilled includes all household waste that is disposed of at a landfill site instead of being recycled or diverted from landfill through other methods. It also includes incinerator ash that is landfilled, plus any recycling and composting rejects that occur during collection, sorting or further treatment that go to landfill.
Waste managed includes all wastes recycled, diverted from landfill and landfilled within the relevant reporting year. This includes stockpiled waste from a previous year sent to final management but excludes treated waste stockpiled prior to final management.
Waste recycled includes recyclable materials that have been recycled or prepared for reuse? and biodegradable materials that have been composted or digested. The amount of waste recycled as defined above is that accepted by the reprocessor facility. As such it excludes any recycling rejects that occur during collection, sorting or further treatment. From 2015, the composting figures do not include any waste composted that has not reached the quality standards set by PAS 100/110.
WasteDataFlow A web-based reporting tool used by local authorities to report the wastes they collect and manage.
Appendix 7. Acronyms
Acronyms
CLO Compost-Like Output
Defra Department of the Environment Food and Rural Affairs
EWC European Waste Catalogue
EWC-STAT European Waste Catalogue for Statistics
MBT Mechanical biological treatment
MRF Materials recovery facility
PAS Publicly Available Specification for Composted Materials
SEPA Scottish Environment Protection Agency
WFAS Waste From All Sources
WDF WasteDataFlow
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Net incineration is the gross inputs, less outputs such as bottom ash and metals which are disposed or recycled↩︎