The report in question notes, inter alia, current differences throughout Europe between the costs of landfill and incineration of non-hazardous waste, and concludes that these have to be counteracted either by regulatory measures to harmonise high environmental standards for waste management activities, including rules for the implementation of post-operative control measures, which would lead to an internalisation of external environmental costs, or other measures, including economic instruments such as a landfill tax.
All landfill facilities are subject to waste licensing by the Environmental Protection Agency, and significantly increased costs are being incurred by local authorities in meeting the high environmental standards being applied by the EPA in this regard. As outlined in Changing our Ways, the polluter pays principle requires that these costs should be fully reflected in landfill gate fees and waste charges, which may be expected to increase accordingly.