The Deposit Return Scheme is set to be introduced across England, Scotland and Northern Ireland in October 2027. With 75% of Britons in favour of the changes, and 65% going a step further and favouring binding recycling targets for local authorities, it’s clear that the scheme has garnered a lot of support.

As D-day draws closer, we wanted to look at the various implications the scheme will have for businesses, consumers, and the environment. We’ll also be discussing the impact the scheme will have on local authorities as they contend with the logistical challenges it will bring.

Quick-Fire Explanation of the Scheme

Following in the footsteps of many successful schemes across the world, the Deposit Return Scheme encourages individuals to return their drinks containers to be recycled.

Twenty pence is added to the price of drinks at the point of sale as a form of “deposit” which is then paid back to the customer at the point of return. No receipt or proof of purchase is necessary – this enables anyone who has or finds a drink container to return it to a suitable collector and receive the funds.

The idea is to encourage a “circular economy” where valuable materials are collected, recycled and reused.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), has high hopes for the effect of the scheme on recycling rates due to its impressive track record:

“The average return rate for European countries with a scheme is 87%, according to global eNGO Reloop, with Germany showing the best results at 98%.”

Why is the Scheme Required?

Any scheme that protects the environment is a good thing, but targeting drinks containers is likely to be hugely impactful. Here are some surprising figures on the level of waste produced by drinks containers:

• Around 5 billion single-use drinks bottles and cans are wasted each year (that’s 17 million per day).
• Keep Britain Tidy’s National Litter Survey showed that drinks containers make up 75% of the litter found on our streets.
• Marine Conservation Societyresearch shows that 97% of surveyed beaches were polluted with drinks-related items in 2023.
• The  United Nations Environment Programmeestimates that 75 - 199 million tonnes of plastic is currently found in oceans worldwide.
• Plastics break down into ‘microplastics’ – tiny pieces of plastic that enter our food chains, harming ecosystems and biodiversity.
• The horrific images from places like the Loch Long at Arrochar certainly drive the point home.

The Impact on Businesses

The whole point for the scheme is to massively increase recycling rates without creating a financial burden. The consumer pays a little more and receives that money back when they return the packaging to be recycled, creating an incentive to recycle.

Some profit may be made from deposits being paid for containers that are never brought back, but return points will need to be set up and waste management systems will need to be arranged for the contents to be transported to suitable recycling facilities.

British Soft Drinks is in favour of the scheme, with some prerequisites:

“The BSDA supports the introduction of a UK-wide DRS for all plastic (PET) and can beverage containers up to 3 litres in size. Our assessment suggests this is the best way to increase recycling levels and tackle litter. However, this must be accompanied by reform of the current producer responsibility system to create greater transparency and increased investment in UK recycling infrastructure.

The Extended Producer Responsibility initiative is designed to make producers accountable for the costs associated with the disposal of the packaging their products are supplied in. Councils are expected to receive substantial EPR funding to manage this waste (estimated at £1.1 billion for 2025-26).

The Impact on Consumers

For consumers, a small increase in the price of drinks will be felt, but hopefully that is enough to convince most of us to save our containers and return them for a refund of the deposit. Habits die hide so this change may not be immediate. It may remind some of the change in behaviour once a charge was applied for plastic bags.

Return points may be an issue. For some, they may be easily accessible – dotted around the area and simple to reach. For others, return points may only be available at large supermarkets or local leisure centres. For non-drivers, busy families, the elderly and differently abled consumers, this may become tricky.

Waste Management and the Deposit Return Scheme

For local authorities, the scheme will pose some new challenges. Despite being morally onboard with a scheme that will be highly impactful, many may struggle with the logistical planning and forecasting involved.

Return points will need to be emptied regularly. The contents will need to be taken to a suitable recycling point. Additional staff and vehicles are likely to be needed, so route analysis will be important to reduce the financial cost and environmental impact of the milage involved.

We worked with Zero Waste Scotland during their planning for the initial launch of a 2022 version of DRS, helping them to produce their Logistics & Infrastructure Plan. The primary aim of the project was to calculate the optimum number of bulking points and counting centres to minimise the cost of the DRS logistics.

We used a Geographical Information Systems approach, utilising world-leading software packages for mapping, network analysis and route optimisation. Combined with detailed information provided by Zero Waste Scotland, cost models were generated to compare scenarios and ultimately identify the optimum solution.

The detailed analysis identified the most cost-effective solution, considering the full container journey from purchase point, to return point, to bulking location and the final journey to a counting centre or reprocessing facility. This provided Zero Waste Scotland with a range of options to approach the logistical challenge and a comprehensive fact-file crucial to the decision-making process to ensure the operation could be delivered cost-effectively.

The DRS Scheme Administrator is to be appointed in the spring of 2025. They face a significant challenge to meet the deadlines set by government. Contact us today – we’d be happy to assist.

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A report produced by Imperial College London predicts having a full Circular Economy will result in a saving of an estimated £2.9bn p/a & the creation of 175000 jobs in the UK. The model is intended to replace the current linear system, one of ‘make, take and dispose’ and see greater circulation - re-use, repurpose and recycling of material goods.

Along with the increase in jobs the saving of money, a CE would see a great reduction in waste and pollution, avoiding further damage to the environment and decreasing the dependence on raw materials. A long-term benefit of adopting the fundamentals of a CE is the preparedness for dealing with emerging resource security or scarcity. As the shift towards renewable energy becomes unavoidable, resilience will have already been established and local economies will thrive on the transformation.

Delivering and implementing a Circular Economy.

A starting point for effective implementation is the overhaul of products and ensure quality and reusability – focussing on materials. A more challenging requirement is to engage the public and change consumer behaviour. A large portion of the public are becoming more sustainable with their consumption already and as the high-street adapts, we see small businesses marketing themselves under the ‘sustainable’ banner.

A key consideration in the introduction of CE is the development of new policy and legislature. Policy must be developed to include elements that encourage businesses to adopt sustainable working practices as well as encouraging the public to make considerations when buying or disposing of products and materials. Legislation to protect sustainable working practice and minimising waste must also be introduced. To keep this cyclical, business will have to adopt circular procurement to drive markets for products and services. Establishing such an approach will involve engaging stakeholders - presenting the bigger picture.

As adoption of the fundamentals becomes more prevalent in the business world, we will see a change in the way business-to-business transaction and support is conducted. Encouraging collaboration and partnerships will also play a considerable role in the delivery of a robust CE. By creating a circular supply chain, we can phase out unsustainable materials. Manufacturing products from bio-based or renewable materials or replacing nonrenewing resources with bio-based or renewable materials e.g. hemp.

Smart Cities are already seeing great benefits from the introduction of new technology and encouraging innovation. A CE is a ripe opportunity for taking advantage of ‘new tools such as AI, the internet of things and biomimicry mean our design ambitions are only limited by our imagination’ (Mayne, 2020). Through embracing new technology - e.g. route optimisations software, better data is gathered and can be scrutinised with greater confidence, shared sincerely and advantageously used to improve services and products.

‘Sustainability which minimises impact and Circular Economy which maximises opportunity’ (Mayne, 2020)

View our webinar exploring the CE further with Brian Mayne here.

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A circular economy has many benefits, not the least of which is the reduction of emissions and higher availability of renewable or recyclable resources. However, considering that a linear economy has been the norm, some are saying there are many threats to adopting it. This does hold a lot of logic, as adopting a circular economy will require fundamental changes to the entire value chain. From the design and production processes of products to patterns of consumption and new business models, adopting a circular economy is something we are only really beginning to discover how to do.
So what are some of the things that pose a possible threat in 2017 to the circular economy concept?
Not Rethinking Energy Usage

Our current systems see many products being disposed of in landfill. This results in a high loss of residual energy, a small amount of which can be recouped via incineration or recycling. However, in stopping there, we are doing ourselves a great disservice and threatening a circular economy.
In the linear model, it’s the steps involved in extracting materials from the ground and converting them into a form that’s commercially-usable. However, in rethinking energy usage by adopting a system not so reliant on new materials being input for product manufacture, we can gain much greater benefit.
The Price of Natural Resources

A dramatic rise in the price of natural resources has been observed over the last 20 years. Currently, prices for food, non-food agricultural items, metals and energy are higher than at any other point in the last hundred years. This has caused unrest in some emerging economies, and these sustained high prices could pose a threat to the adoption of a circular economy in 2017.
Demographic Challenges

Two of the world’s largest countries by population, namely India and China, are each facing their own significant economic transition in the years to come. Each country took under 17 years to double their per-capita GDP. Not only that, but the incredible number of people who entered these growth periods could very well mean that up to 3 billion middle-class consumers will be on the scene by 2030. This incredible number of spenders entering the market will cause the demand on resources to spike dramatically, causing possible delays in the adoption of a circular economy.
Rapid Financial Market Integration

Globalised markets are becoming more the norm. However, this also means that a global impact is felt should something occur in a particular region. For example, Fukushima caused significant disruption to global supply chains. It isn’t likely that the trend will end any time soon; in fact, it may become even more of a problem as more thorough integration into global financial systems and value chains by emerging markets continues.
Climate Change

Climate change is causing changes in snow cover, which serves to alter the flows of streams and rivers. Glacial patterns are already changing, which is altering the global fresh water supply. All of these factors influence irrigation needs, patterns of erosion and requirements for flood management; impacting the overall supply of agricultural products. Although climate change can be overcome, it will not be overcome in time for next year, and so poses a definite threat to the circular economy.
Adopting a more circular business model will allow a far greater number of products to be redistributed, refurbished and reused. Moving in this direction will lead to many benefits for certain industries.
Despite the multitude of challenges that face the circular economy in 2017, many companies have begun taking the initiative to fight the negative effects of the linear economy. While this alone won’t be enough to ensure no lasting effects are felt, it is a first step toward a more sustainable way of life.
www.ukisl.com/en/

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It is expected that by 2050 over 80% of people in developed countries and over 60% of those in underdeveloped countries will be living in cities. In order for these cities to be able to absorb the inevitable growth in population, their resources will need to be used efficiently. There are a number of smart technologies which will allow for efficient resource use.

Infrastructure Technology

The basis of all smart city solutions is infrastructure technology, which converts information from the real world into data that can be used by computers. The ability to do this helps, for example, in the planning and design of regional and urban development in line with future demand. This technology can also be used with existing systems, an example of which would be improving data analysis of traffic patterns using data from fixed road sensors and in-vehicle satnav. This is the world of Big Data and the Internet of Things (IoT).

Energy Systems

Energy usage and control systems can significantly impact a smart city. These systems allow for more efficient management and conservation of energy, as they control and monitor the energy being used. Smart cities employing this technology can reduce energy inefficiency by 30% in under 20 years.

In addition to smart energy systems, the use of a managed water supply, waste management systems and renewable energy sources will allow smart cities to reduce their environmental impact as well as conserve energy.

Transport Tech

Considering the inevitable growth of city populations over the coming decades, more sustainable options for transport will be needed. Dynamic mobility solutions will most certainly have an impact on making a smart city. Information-gathering will be the first step to developing these solutions, identifying movement and driving patterns to find the best solutions for reducing accidents while allowing citizens to move around the city as efficiently as possible.

Smart Health

As cities grow in size, so too will their demographics begin to change. Higher numbers of ageing citizens will require new and innovative ways to access quality health care services. The latest Smart health care solutions allow for remote connectivity between patients and healthcare professionals, allowing them to provide patient specific healthcare from afar. The latest technology is enabling medical researchers to collaborate in real time across geographical borders and time zones.

Services

Smart cities allow for seamless communication between residents and municipal authorities. This is accomplished in numerous ways, with many smart cities deploying free to access Wi-Fi networks. Being able to communicate in this way enables greater citizen access to service data, such as the use of apps to manage waste container collection, as well enable then to access other services information in real time, such as public bus times or the location and availability of free to use bicycles.

Green Urban Development

With our natural resources disappearing at an alarming rate, one of the factors that will make a city smart will be solutions that aim to minimise environmental damage. These approaches reduce the output of waste and the input of resources. Examples of green urban development include the creation of more efficient buildings with smart technology, and the adoption of integrated systems engineering. Other solutions include the optimisation of green energy generation processes and distribution networks, as well as ensuring that the supply side matches demand.
The creation of smart cities can take a wide range of approaches, from complete solutions covering all functions within a city to individual projects covering only districts and buildings. Smart cities are the way of the future. To be effective, however, their framework must be broad enough for all processes to operate in. In addition, actual outputs must be monitored, both to make necessary adjustments to behaviours and seize opportunities to embrace new technologies.
With urbanisation occurring at faster rates than ever before, its effects are already wide-reaching. This presents many opportunities for collaboration to occur. Challenges will be ever-present, but when they’re handled as opportunities, all can benefit.

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