The Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) has the mission to protect and improve the environment
by holding government and other public authorities to account.1 The OEP corporate plan sets out its
commitment to:
Review the available evidence of the regulation, management and monitoring of waste in
Northern Ireland.
Resource Futures was commissioned in June 2023 to support the OEP’s activities by undertaking a
baseline evidence assessment of waste management and illegal disposal in Northern Ireland. Through
desk research, waste data mapping, and stakeholder engagement, this assessment describes:
- The environmental and public health impacts of waste in Northern Ireland.
- The legal duties, responsibilities, and powers placed on public authorities with regard to waste
management and illegal disposal in Northern Ireland, including monitoring and reporting
requirements, and targets. - Legal and illegal waste flows within Northern Ireland and across its boundaries, and the drivers
of waste crime. - Best practice in waste management and illegal disposal.