"To The Tip And... Beyond!"
What Happens to Our Waste?
None of our waste goes to landfill - everything we can recycle, we do. Everything that can’t be recycled, we take to the Cornwall Energy Recovery Centre (CERC, pronounced like “Captain Kirk”).
CERC recovers energy from waste and recycling, reducing the need for landfills in the country and generating energy, reducing the need for fossil fuels. In 2022, CERC generated 20 megawatts of energy from the refuse brought in, enough to power 21,000 homes.
All emissions from CERC go through a multi-stage cleaning process, protecting the air from harmful pollutants.
Our Pledge to the Environment
Cornwall Waste Care is committed to providing waste services that are fully aligned with the latest environmental standards and the new national recycling laws. We work to minimise environmental impact through responsible collection, efficient sorting, and transparent disposal routes. Our priority is simple: maximise recycling, prevent contamination, and ensure every customer, homeowner, business, holiday-let owner or event, stays fully compliant with UK law.
Compliance With UK Waste & Recycling Laws
From 2025 onwards, the UK has introduced significant changes to how recycling must be collected from both households and workplaces. These fall under the Simpler Recycling programme and the Separation of Waste (England) Regulations 2024 & 2025.
Cornwall Waste Care is fully compliant with these regulations, which require:
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Workplaces (including holiday lets, events and businesses) to separate
dry recycling, food waste, and residual waste from 31 March 2025. -
Households to follow a standard set of recycling streams from 31 March 2026, including paper & card, plastic & metal, glass, food waste, and residual waste.
We actively design our services around these requirements. Whether you manage a holiday home, run a business, organise an event or need domestic collections, we provide correctly separated waste streams, clear labelling, and guidance to keep you compliant with the law.
Our Trucks
Until electric trucks allow us to cover all of Cornwall, our fleet is run on fossil fuels. Always trying to ensure the most from the environment, however, we only fuel our fleet at Shell petrol stations, which plant trees to offset the carbon used.
In 2022, we offset 120 tonnes of carbon emissions by using Shell fuels, and we will continue to do everything possible to help reduce our annual Co2 output.
Environment Agency License
Cornwall Waste Care Ltd has a license from the Environment Agency that allows CWC to be a Upper Tier Carrier and Dealer ( License no: CBDU 266810 ). We also diligently adhere to the Waste Duty of Care Code of Practice.