ARGYLL and Bute saw 95 per cent of its waste recycled, composted and recovered in the first three months of 2026, a report has revealed.
The Scottish Government implemented its municipal landfill ban from January 1, with council officials now reporting a sharp increase in recovery of waste.
The document, which went to an area committee meeting, said that 41.3 per cent had been recycled or composted with a further 54 per cent recovered.
The figures were discussed at a meeting of the council’s Bute and Cowal area committee on Tuesday, June 2.
The report in advance of the meeting said: “The council is fully compliant with the landfill ban in the waste PPP (public-private partnership) and Helensburgh and Lomond areas.
“A relatively small amount of municipal landfill has continued at the council waste disposal sites at Glengorm (on Mull) and Gartbreck (on Islay) after the council was successful in a temporary derogation application submission to SEPA (Scottish Environment Protection Agency).
“The temporary derogations for both of these island sites expires on June 30, however the council intends to apply for further six-month extensions. Further future six-monthly derogation extensions may be allowed by SEPA up until the end of 2027 at the latest.”
Councillor Reeni Kennedy-Boyle (SNP, Isle of Bute) told principal waste management officer Alan Millar at the meeting: “I wanted to bring you in because in the area scorecard, there is a particular success story.
“This item has been red risk since I was elected in relation to waste management, and I am relieved we have had significant success recently.”
Mr Millar responded: “It has been quite a busy year in the build-up to the municipal landfill ban. It was a major challenge to get that changed for the Bute and Cowal area so that we could comply with the ban. The contract was due to expire in September, so the timing was not great.
“There were three biological treatment plants, at Oban, Sandbank and by Lochgilphead, and those were to be converted into waste transfer stations, which would allow waste to be transferred to be processed.
“You will see a dramatic change in the figures. There are still landfill sites in Mull and Islay, but we got temporary derogations to allow to continue landfilling there in the sort term, although we can apply for six-month extensions until the end of 2027.
“There are more journeys out of Argyll, but the reduction in landfill has a far greater environmental benefit and that is reflected in the figures you see today.”
Councillor Kennedy-Boyle added: “It is such a remarkable change and a great achievement to do all that work.
“I wanted to highlight it for Bute and Cowal because I know the PPP contract was a particular hurdle to overcome.”
