The call was made in its seventh Carbon Budget which was released today (26 February 2025), which also noted that “the largest share of waste sector emissions comes from landfill methane emissions”.
Additionally, the budget called for the end of biogenic waste, including food waste and green waste, to landfill by 2028 and included several references to carbon capture and storage (CCS).
The report described CCS as “critical” to reducing industrial emissions – which make up 11% of the reductions that are needed to reach the set targets.
The CCC modelled that the UK must reduce emissions by 87% (compared to 1990 levels) by 2040.
To achieve this, the committee proposed that all new Energy from Waste (EfW) plants should only be granted planning permission if “a viable route to connecting to CCS can be established”.
Response from industry
Trevor Hutchings, CEO of the Renewable Energy Association (REA), commented: “We welcome the momentum today’s advice from the CCC provides, as it clarifies the route forward for the UK’s decarbonisation path, emphasising this is achievable and affordable for the country.
“The recognition that renewable and clean technologies are vital to decarbonising the UK’s economy in a cost-effective way is an important message from today’s publication. So now is the time to work at speed towards net zero and to secure the jobs, investment, environmental and energy security benefits which will flow from this.
“While we need to better understand the CCC’s treatment of some renewable technologies, we look forward to engaging with them and with the Government on the implementation of the Carbon Budget recommendations.”
Mike Maudsley, CEO of enfinium, added: “Today’s report from the CCC makes it clear that the clock is ticking to scale up engineered carbon removals using CCS technology. Without them, we won’t reach net zero. CCS is essential for decarbonising industrial sectors where there are ‘limited alternatives’ to cut emissions. But without urgent investment in CCS, we risk failing to deliver one of the few solutions that can remove carbon from the atmosphere at scale.
“The committee’s analysis shows that waste to energy with CCS, or WECCS, could use homegrown unrecyclable waste to deliver over a fifth of the 35 million tonnes of engineered carbon removals needed in the Committee’s central scenario to achieve Net Zero.
“Waste sector emissions have already fallen by around two-thirds since 1990 as unrecyclable waste has been diverted from climate-damaging landfill to the UK’s modern fleet of energy from waste facilities. But, even if we reach our ambitious recycling targets, over 17 million tonnes of unrecyclable waste will remain in the 2040s.
“The CCC is right to call for the elimination of all appropriate waste to landfill—methane emissions from landfill are the largest source of waste-related greenhouse gases and addressing them is an urgent priority. The responsible path forward is to eliminate landfill and ensure every EfW facility captures its emissions using CCS.”
You can view our full industry reactions piece here. Want to see your reaction included? Email savannah.c@letsrecycle.com.
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