Research and analysis: Waste crime interventions and evaluation

The Environment Agency has evaluated the impact of an additional £5 million in funding to tackle waste crime.

Rogue operators undercut legitimate business, evade landfill tax and have a negative impact on people and the environment. Waste crime costs an estimated £1 billion a year from unpaid taxes, lost revenue for legitimate businesses and the associated impacts on people and the environment.

This project was set up to tackle three priority outcome areas: reducing the risk from illegal waste sites, reducing the mis-description of waste, and reducing the illegal export of waste.

The impact evaluation findings show that the Environment Agency’s activities in tackling waste crime have a net positive effect on both people and the environment, but also offer good value for money to the taxpayer.