Litter and flytipping: scale and cost

5 Effects of COVID-19 Pandemic

5.1 Background and Context

Throughout 2020 and 2021, the COVID-19 pandemic caused widespread disruption to economic activity. The way in which people used products and services changed drastically. There have been several reports, as well as anecdotal evidence describing how litter and flytipping has been affected by the pandemic and the variety of issues it has caused.

5.2 Results

5.2.1 New Types of Waste

Over the course of the pandemic, several new products related to health and sanitation have emerged as commonly littered items. Since the early start of COVID-19, and despite management efforts and announcements, there have been worldwide reports of improper disposal and littering of PPE by the public.^[103] A recent estimate of the global mismanagement of PPE found that an average of 129 billion face masks and 65 billion gloves were littered each month.^[104]

In the UK, the introduction of mandatory fitted face masks in indoor spaces resulted in a significant increase in single-use surgical face masks used by the general public, and consequently also the number of these products being littered. Indeed, a study by the University of Portsmouth found UK mask litter to have increased by 9,000%.^[105]

A 2022 analysis published in Nature Sustainability used data crowdsourced on the citizen science application Litterati to explore worldwide changes in PPE litter as a result of the pandemic. For the UK over the period of August to October 2020, masks accounted for more than 5% of all recorded litter. Gloves and wipes accounted for an additional 1.5% each. Whilst this pattern is not repeated worldwide, inconsistencies in data collection, as well as differences in the rate at which national policies were introduced, leaves comparisons between countries difficult.

At the time of writing, there was no formally published data relating to the changes in litter composition in Scotland. However, anecdotal evidence from community litter pickers suggests that quantities of PPE found to have been incorrectly disposed of increased drastically. For instance, during an interview with Fife Street Champions, a representative stated that they counted 17,000 face masks that were collected since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, compared to presumably zero or negligible quantities pre-pandemic.

5.2.2 Change in Behaviours

As well as in the introduction of PPE, other government recommendations and rules caused behaviour changes. For a period during the pandemic, groups were only allowed to meet outside. This led to parks and open spaces being used with increasing frequency. Indoor socialising was restricted, and thus meeting outdoors was the norm. As a consequence, littering in these spaces also appeared to increase.^[106]

In addition to changing socialising habits, concerns of hygiene and safety led to an increase in the number of people opting for disposable rather than reusable products (e.g., coffee cups).¹⁰⁶

5.2.3 Closure of HWRCs

The decision to close Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs) was taken on 24^th March 2020. This was in line with the UK Government’s guidance for people to stay at home and only travel, if necessary, to prevent the spread of COVID-19. From March 2020 to March 2021 in England, 1.13m fly-tipping incidents were dealt with by LAs, an increase of 16% on the 980,000 reported in the previous year.^[107] In Scotland there have also been reports of increased incidents of flytipping, West Lothian reported 73 tonnes of flytipped waste was collected between October 2020 to December 2020^[108], unfortunately there are no figures from total number of incidents reported in Scotland.

During the pandemic, many households used the time to remodel or clear out houses, resulting in a lot of waste in need of disposal^[109]. However, due to HWRCs being closed, some resorted to flytipping their waste or using unlicenced waste removals who in turn flytipped the waste. This information was validated by two LAs in Scotland.

5.2.4 Staffing Issues in Waste Collection

During the pandemic there were significant staff shortages due to staff illness or the need to isolate. As a result of these staff shortages, many waste, recycling, and cleansing rounds and services were not completed^[110]. Prioritisation was given to clearing general waste bins, and less resources were allocated to litter picking and mechanical street sweeping. This led to a rise in the amount of street litter present, as the frequency of clearing streets was lower. Additionally, uncollected bins due to staff shortages may have led to residents flytipping their waste if their missed collection wasn’t rectified.

5.2.5 Commentary

During interviews with Scottish LAs, several stated that littering and flytipping appeared to have increased during the pandemic. In 2020/21, Keep Scotland Beautiful (KSB) saw the largest decline in streets that are classified ‘acceptable’ (according to LEAMS^[111]) in high density residential areas (82.9%, a decline by 4.5% from 19/20).^[112] Whilst less significant, a decline was also observed in low density residential areas (92.8%, a decline by 1.7% from 19/20). Overall, residential areas reached a level of 90.5% of sites with acceptable litter levels, whilst town centres reached 88.4%. KSB also stated that domestic waste issues (from poor presentation, over capacity, and under-resourcing) increased during the COVID-19 pandemic and are potentially linked to people spending more time at home, staff shortages in servicing, and changes in collection frequency.

Additionally, during interviews with public and private bodies, many saw an increase in littering and flytipping, again particularly an increase in PPE.

5.3 Summary

The pandemic has increased the amount of litter and flytipping through the introduction of new materials to the waste stream, policies and laws causing changes in behaviours and the closure of HWRCs and other amenities. This has had significant impacts on the authorities throughout Scotland.

Out of the new materials (masks, gloves, wipes), masks have been the most commonly littered item. This is likely due to the fact that masks were mandatory, and at the start of the pandemic most were disposable rather than reusable. The littering of other items was predominantly fuelled by restrictions for socialising and closure of amenities, causing people to spend more time outdoors and thus more likely to incorrectly dispose of their waste.

The closure of HWRC’s and staff shortages in the waste industry is likely to have caused an increase in incidents of flytipping. Anecdotal evidence suggests that residents may have turned to flytipping (or contracting of unlicenced waste removal companies who then flytipped) to address their build-up of waste. This is likely either due to not being able to take waste to the HWRC or having multiple missed bin collections.