Birmingham bin strikes branded 'environmental disaster' as 40,000 tonnes of recycling burned in six months

Since the already-long-running row over pay cuts escalated on 11 March 2025, household recycling has effectively ceased across Birmingham, after six months of all-out strike action by refuse collectors facing pay cuts of up to £8,000 a year.

Based on previous years’ figures, LBC understands as much as 40,000 tonnes of recycling could have been sent for incineration during the all-out action.

Birmingham City Council recycled 22.7% of its waste last year and is targeting a 40% recycling rate by next year, but there are doubts as to whether that’s possible, even if this strike were to be resolved by January.

After a major incident was declared and sightings of rats the size of cats overrunning the second city were reported worldwide, bin collections are now once again a regular sight in Birmingham.

But John Newson, Lead Campaigner with Birmingham Friends of the Earth, told LBC the scale of the recycling crisis can’t be underestimated.

Read more: Birmingham bin strikes to continue through Christmas and into spring as workers vote to extend walkout

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He said: “This is an environmental disaster, really. We can't see carbon dioxide. One tonne of rubbish makes one tonne of carbon dioxide, which is a bit difficult to imagine, but it's a lot. It's like you driving your car for a year, as it were, but we're now multiplying it by a million people. So it's a lot going into the sky and the sky is definitely full up.”

Waste industry experts have also warned of the long-term consequences.

Scott Butler, Executive Director at Material Focus, said: “It's lost resources. Lost resources that could go into better use. I'm sure that the incidents of fly tipping are increasing now because people are struggling to find space.

"As I said, material that could be recycled will be going into general waste. I heard talk of people going into work with their waste and getting it recycled there, which is at least it's being recovered, but is not ideal. So I question whether it was ever sustainable.”

Although household waste is now being more regularly collected, fly-tipping is indeed still rife in many parts of the city.

Derek Roberts, a bin lorry driver and team leader taking part in the strike, told LBC: “I acknowledge it's not acceptable, I can only apologise to the residents of Birmingham for the level of service.

“But what I would ask you to do is put yourself in my position. And if you're going to work doing the same job for 33 years and then you're told that you're going to lose 20 to 25% of your wages through no fault of your own, it's a bitter pill to swallow.”

The consultation period for drivers is sent to end in the next week meaning, if nothing changes, they will be face with two choices: redundancy or a pay cut.

Workers like Mr Roberts and their union, Unite, have called for intervention from the Government to help find a resolution.

Pat McFadden, MP for Wolverhampton South East and Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, told LBC “This bin strike has been a drag on the city, it's a drag on its reputation. So I want to see a resolution to this strike as soon as possible. Six months is too long for a dispute like this to go on.

“My appeal to everybody, to the City Council, to the unions involved, is to get round the table, reach a resolution and restore the bin services so that Birmingham can get back to normal and its citizens don't have to live with this ongoing.”

In a statement shared with LBC, a Birmingham City Council spokesperson said: "While we are disappointed the dispute has not been resolved as Unite has rejected all our offers, we are continuing to make regular waste collections as we prepare to implement the new and improved service.

"We have been collecting an average of approximately 1,330 tonnes of kerbside waste every day, more than we did prior to industrial action, and over the last six months we have collected over 100,000 tonnes of kerbside waste.

“We want to see this dispute end; we understand residents’ frustration and appreciate their patience over the last few months.”

Unite’s General Secretary, Sharon Graham, has said in a statement that the union is still yet to receive a genuine offer.

“Our members are resolute in their determination to win this dispute and are disgusted by the behaviour of the Labour council.”

The union's also warned the strike could continue into next spring, which would mean another six months of all-out action and possibly another half-year of no household recycling.