Landfill tax was introduced by the Government in October 1996 to help reduce the amount of waste being landfilled in the UK, to promote re-use and recycling, and provide funding for research into more sustainable ways of managing waste.
The tax is currently charged at two rates:
- Standard rate: £24 per tonne for all active waste
- Lower rate: £2 per tonne for all inactive waste
These rates are set to rise in 2008 to:
- Standard rate: £32 per tonne for all active waste
- Lower rate: £2.50 per tonne for all inactive waste
Landfill operators must pay this tax for every tonne of waste that they dispose of via landfill.
Landfill Communities Fund (LCF)
The Landfill Communities Fund (formerly the Landfill Tax Credit Scheme) is a funding scheme for community and environmental projects close to landfill sites.
The fund enables landfill operators to contribute 6.6% of their landfill tax liability to not-for-profit environmental bodies for allocation to eligible projects.
SITA UK provides this funding to SITA Trust, who support community and environmental improvement projects through the LCF.
All distributors of landfill communities funding are regulated by ENTRUST on behalf of HM Revenue and Customs.
