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Waste data

Waste data

SEPA is responsible for reporting national waste statistics to the Scottish Government and European Union among others. As regulator, SEPA also has a duty to assess whether waste management sites comply with the conditions of their licence or permit.

To do this, SEPA collects and verifies data from a number of sources, mainly:

  • Operators of all licensed and most permitted waste management sites
  • Operators of certain activities exempt from full waste management licensing
  • Local authorities.

A strategy for improving waste data in Scotland, also known as the Waste data strategy 2017, aims to deliver Scotland's current and future waste data needs as we move towards a more resource-focused future. Written in partnership by SEPA, Zero Waste Scotland and Scottish Government, it outlines what we will achieve and how we are going to co-ordinate and deliver a plan that will support Scotland's transition to a more circular economy, where products and materials are kept in high value use for as long as possible.

Most of the data are presented as interactive tools with tables and charts that can be filtered to suit. All the data are available in Excel format.

SEPA also collects and reports on offsite transfers of waste from industrial sites through the Scottish Pollutant Release Inventory (SPRI).