Where Will All My Rubbish Go?

Scotland’s long-delayed landfill ban soon comes into force, and 600,000 tonnes of household waste will have to be disposed of in some other way. Kevin Keane investigates how ready Scotland is to bin the black bin bags and embrace a less environmentally damaging means of dealing with our rubbish.

He visits one of a new generation of giant incinerators springing up across the country. They burn rubbish, creating energy from waste, and are less polluting than landfill. However, they still pump damaging carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and many local communities worry about the impact of pollution on their health.

The obvious answer is to create less rubbish in the first place. Kevin explores why Scotland’s recycling rates are stuck at below 50% and hears from those trying to change our throwaway culture.