The Power of LESS.
UK Landfill tax goes up 11% to £80 per tonne on April 1st 2014. Will this drive consumers and businesses to generate LESS waste? or will it be merely be factored into costs? And what’s it got to do with an Espresso Coffee ? or the power of less?
The UK Landfill Tax was brought into existence on October 1 1996 which saw councils charge a tax of £8 per tonne of material dumped in landfill. This is in addition to the gate fee charged by the the landfill operator (range from £10-30).
This tax has, unsurprisingly, steadily increased over time and currently stands at £72 per tonne in 2013/14 for active waste. This will now rise to £80 per tonne on April 1 2014.
The Landfill Tax, and its escalated increase, is supposed to drive councils, businesses and consumers towards the development of recycling infrastructure by making the landfill disposal, incineration route a more financially unattractive option. The goal is to help the UK meet its targets under the EU Landfill Directive with which it is struggling.
But will it work? Will costs be merely passed on to the consumer or will we see real progress in waste volume reduction. The Jury’s out yet but lets hope behavior will change and we will all discover the power of doing more with less waste.
So what’s it got to do with Coffee, I hear you ask. Well as you enjoy a quick kick from your morning coffee think about what and Espresso really is. The Espresso is doing more with less. You get the kick , aroma and taste of the full coffee but in a smaller package. Doing more with less ! Enjoy.