Introduction of mandatory digital waste tracking

Over 200 million tonnes of waste is produced in the UK each year [1] but there is currently no single or comprehensive way of tracking it, with legislation relating to the transport, management and description of waste being introduced separately over the last 30 or so years. Large amounts of data are either not collected or not collated centrally. Multiple IT systems collect certain elements of waste tracking data. Some are paper-based, others digital , some are run by private contractors, others by the government, and where use of existing central digital systems is non-mandatory, take up is very low. As a result, it is very difficult to determine what happens to our waste and to have a comprehensive understanding of whether it has been recycled, recovered, or disposed of. Joining these fragmented systems up and replacing paper-based record-keeping will make it much easier and less time consuming for legitimate waste companies to comply with r