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<p>The Environmental Services Association (ESA) estimates the cost of waste crime
to the English economy in the 2018/19 financial year at £924 million. Scaled up to
UK-level, the cost is estimated to be a little over £1 billion. The work done on behalf
of ESA uses data produced by sources including HMRC, the Environment Agency (EA) and
Defra, as well as EA analysis into costs and impacts of waste crime.</p><p>We have
already taken action by introducing new powers to stop illegal waste sites posing
a risk to the environment, including the ability to lock up sites and to force rogue
operators to clean up all their waste. Building on this, measures in the Environment
Act 2021 give agencies stronger powers of entry and access to evidence in prosecuting
waste crimes. We have also set up the Joint Unit for Waste Crime to disrupt serious
and organised waste crime and reduce its impact.</p><p>Our electronic waste tracking
reforms will make it harder than ever to mis-identify waste or dispose of it inappropriately.
Planned changes to the Carriers, Brokers and Dealers licensing regime will modernise
licensing and make it even harder for rogue operators to escape detection. We will
also soon publish our plans for reform of the exemptions regime, removing opportunities
for criminals to abuse the system.</p>
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