This report, commissioned by Changing Markets, seeks to better understand the barriers to, and opportunities for, greater circular economy activity in the carpet waste management sector in the UK.
The research focuses on the efforts of the UK industry, via the non-profit organisation Carpet Recycling UK (founded in 2008), to divert carpet waste from landfill and recover raw materials.
Our analysis found that, despite an increase in landfill diversion from 2% to 44% in the last decade, the majority of this has been to incineration, refuse derived fuel, and equestrian surfaces, with just 2% being diverted to higher-value recycling applications (e.g. carpet underlay), and less than 1% diverted for reuse.
In addition to highlighting the barriers to improved carpet waste management, which are both design and collection related, the report also outlines the benefits that an extended producer responsibility (EPR) system would bring to the industry.
