Waste & Resources

Waste and Resources Team

We are the largest waste disposal authority in the country responsible for the reuse, recycling and management of municipal waste from Greater Manchester households.

We handle around 4 per cent of the UKs municipal waste. This is approximately 1.03 million tonnes of waste and recycling each year from over a million households from the metropolitan districts of Bolton, Bury, Manchester, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Tameside and Trafford. Wigan operates as a unitary authority and administers its own disposal arrangements so is not part of the Greater Manchester waste contracts.

The Waste and Resources Team manage two waste and resource management contracts with SUEZ recycling and recovery UK who operate the GMCA facilities including 20 household waste and recycling centres.

The 2023/2024 recycling rate for Greater Manchester is 50.1%. The national average in England is 44%, making us one of the best performing city regions in the country.

The landfill diversion rate is 99.3% (2023/2024) meaning that only 0.7% of household waste was sent to landfill. Waste that cannot be reused, recycled or composted is sent to an Energy from Waste plant where it’s burnt to generate electricity.