A study suggesting that as many as 168m light-up Christmas ornaments and similar items could be thrown out in a single year, in the UK, is concerning if not surprising in light of longstanding challenges around recycling rates and waste reduction. Even if the actual figure is lower, there is no question that battery-powered and electrical toys, lights and gifts are proliferating as never before. Despite a great deal of commentary aimed at dialling down consumption over the festive season, especially surplus packaging and rubbish, strings of disposable lights and flashing figures have gained in popularity. Homes, front gardens and shopping streets grow sparklier by the year.
Batteries and electrical devices present particular difficulties when it comes to disposal, because they cause fires. But they are just one part of a more general problem of excessive waste – and weak regulatory oversight. British plastic waste exports rose by 5% in 2024 to nearly 600,000 tonnes. A new report on plastics from the Pew Charitable Trusts warns that global production is expected to rise by 52% by 2040 – to 680m tonnes – outstripping the capacity of waste management systems around the world.
Some retailers in the UK and elsewhere have cut down on packaging. There is a booming online trade in secondhand clothes. But the biggest recent rows about waste in the UK have been about sewage, not consumer goods. An overhaul of water industry regulation is meant to sort this out, following a review in the summer. There is still a high likelihood that the worst-performing company, Thames Water, could collapse into special administration.
But Ofwat is not the only regulator to face criticism for its performance in relation to pollution and waste. The Environment Agency is under growing fire as the problem of illegal rubbish dumping has moved from being a local issue in a handful of locations to a national one.
In October, the House of Lords environment committee called for the government to urgently review its approach to this “critically under-prioritised” problem. An illegal dump at Hoad’s Wood in Kent is being cleaned up at a cost of £15m. But six similar sites in England are known to the Environment Agency. Campaigners believe that the situation is in danger of spiralling if enforcement efforts are not rapidly scaled up.
Discarded strings of battery-powered fairy lights might seem insignificant in the context of vast heaps of toxic waste, or the 3.6m hours of raw sewage spills for which the water industry in England was responsible last year. But environmental organisations are right to draw attention to the role of consumers as well as industry. The Environment Agency ought to have been empowered in the context of the climate crisis – not undermined and underfunded as it was under the Tories. But individuals can make a difference when it comes to waste, both in their decisions about what to buy, keep and get rid of – and in their political opinions and choices.
Another report, published by the consultancy Hybrid Economics last month, said the UK could end its reliance on plastic waste exports, and create 5,400 new jobs, if it invested in up to 15 new recycling facilities. The lights on buildings and trees are cheering in the run-up to holidays, but we shouldn’t ignore what happens when they are turned off.
