The areas with the most toxic landfills in England
- The area in England with the most toxic landfills per km² is Sandwell (West Midlands), with one toxic landfill site for every 6.11km²[1]
- 1,286 landfill sites in England and Wales could contain hazardous waste[2]
- Walsall (West Midlands) has the second most toxic landfills with one for every 6.93km²[3]
- Salford, in Greater Manchester, ranks third with one toxic landfill every 8.1km²[4]
- The county in England with the most toxic landfills overall was Greater Manchester with 94 sites in the district[5]
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Sandwell in the West Midlands has the highest proportion of toxic landfills per km² (one site for every 6.11km²), according to Uswitch.com, the comparison and switching service[1].
Utilising the Government’s Environment Agency data on 1,286 landfill sites in England and Wales with potentially hazardous waste[2], it was found that Walsall (West Midlands) has the second most - one for every 6.93km²[3].
The English district with the third highest proportion of toxic landfills is Salford. There are a total of 12 toxic landfills in the district's area of 97.2km² - the equivalent to one toxic landfill every 8.1km²[4].
Table 1: The areas in England with the most toxic landfills
|
Rank |
District |
County |
District area km² |
Number of toxic landfills |
1 toxic landfill per km² |
|
1 |
Sandwell |
West Midlands |
85.56 |
14 |
6.11 |
|
2 |
Walsall |
West Midlands |
103.97 |
15 |
6.93 |
|
3 |
Salford |
Greater Manchester |
97.2 |
12 |
8.1 |
|
4 |
Halton |
Cheshire |
90.32 |
11 |
8.21 |
|
5 |
Bolton |
Greater Manchester |
139.79 |
15 |
9.32 |
|
6 |
Barking and Dagenham London Borough |
London |
37.78 |
4 |
9.45 |
|
7 |
Manchester |
Greater Manchester |
115.65 |
12 |
9.64 |
|
8 |
Three Rivers |
Hertfordshire |
88.82 |
9 |
9.87 |
|
9 |
Bury |
Suffolk |
99.46 |
10 |
9.95 |
|
10 |
Bexley London Borough |
London |
64.32 |
6 |
10.72 |
Source: Uswitch.com
The results also reveal that the county with the most toxic landfills overall is Greater Manchester - the county has a total of 94 sites[5].
Table 2: The counties in England with the most toxic landfills
|
Rank |
County |
Total toxic landfills |
|
1 |
Greater Manchester |
94 |
|
2 |
Lancashire |
49 |
|
3 |
Cheshire |
43 |
|
4 |
Hertfordshire |
42 |
|
5 |
West Midlands |
41 |
|
6 |
Cumbria |
39 |
|
=7 |
South Yorkshire |
38 |
|
=7 |
West Yorkshire |
38 |
|
8 |
Somerset |
35 |
|
9 |
London |
33 |
|
10 |
Lincolnshire |
31 |
Please see the blog post for information on all of the toxic landfills analysed, covering both England and Wales: https://www.uswitch.com/gas-electricity/toxic-landfills/
Will Owen, energy expert at Uswitch.com, comments: “The shockingly high number of toxic landfills scattered across the country highlights the variety of problems these landfills can cause.
“It is down to the local authorities to help identify them and organise a clean-up. Some of these older landfills haven’t been lined before the waste was deposited, unlike modern landfills, which means that the chemicals can escape.
With the added support and funding from the government we will be able to stop any nasty surprises that could be coming our way.”
For information on all of the districts analysed, including Welsh districts, please see the document attached.
Find out how you could save nearly £1,000 a year with Uswitch here.
