According to the Office for National Statistics, in 2007/08, each person in England generated an astonishing 495 kilograms of household waste. That's almost half a metric tonne. In addition, Defra published a breakdown of the composition of household waste (admittedly, the data is for 2002,) represented in the following table:
Garden waste - 20%
Paper and board - 18%
Kitchen waste - 17%
General household sweepings - 9%
Glass - 7%
Wood/Furniture - 5%
Scrap metal/white goods - 5%
Dense plastic - 4%
Soil - 3%
Plastic film - 3%
Textiles - 3%
Metal cans/foil - 3%
Disposable nappies - 2%
Garden waste - 20%
Paper and board - 18%
Kitchen waste - 17%
General household sweepings - 9%
Glass - 7%
Wood/Furniture - 5%
Scrap metal/white goods - 5%
Dense plastic - 4%
Soil - 3%
Plastic film - 3%
Textiles - 3%
Metal cans/foil - 3%
Disposable nappies - 2%
Sources: Office for National Statistics, Defra.
Sorry if numbers aren't your thing, but I draw your attention to the kitchen waste figure: 17%. I know you can't put all your kitchen waste into a wormery for various reasons (attracting vermin, too acidic, etc.,) but if you only managed half of it, that amounts to an incredible 42 kilograms (or well over 6 stone,) per person, per year. Blimey.
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