The UK’s waste wood market remained buoyant in 2024, with strong demand for material, according to the latest annual statistics published today (26 June) by the Wood Recyclers’ Association (WRA).
Of the 4.5 million tonnes of waste wood arising in the UK last year, the vast majority (4.33 million tonnes) was sent for reuse, recycling or recovery – equivalent to over 96%.
This achievement was similar to the 97% processed in 2023 – and may in reality have represented a slightly higher percentage given that limited activity in the construction sector may have marginally reduced waste wood arisings compared to previous years, according to the WRA.
The 2024 figures were compiled by the WRA using its annual survey of members who handle approximately 90% of the waste wood market by volume. These figures are extrapolated, alongside latest industry data, to produce figures for the whole of the UK.
Other key takeaways include:
- Large-scale biomass continued to be the largest end user of waste wood during the year, accounting for 2.8 million tonnes (65%) of material (no increase from 2023). This demonstrates the sector’s important role in delivering secure, renewable baseload power.
- The panel board industry remained the second largest user of waste wood, using over 920,000 tonnes of waste wood (21% of processed material). This represented a small (4.5%) decrease compared to 2023, due to the depressed housing market and the closure of the West Fraser South Molton manufacturing plant.
- The amount of waste wood used for animal bedding, equine surfacing, other recycling and reuse decreased 11% year-on-year to 310,000 tonnes. This fall was linked to reduced demand for poultry bedding due to avian flu, alongside reduced construction activity impacting reuse.
- Pallet refurbishment and reuse of wooden items through local authority reuse hubs increased during the year – something which is excluded from the figures but which the WRA hopes to report on in future.
- Exports/imports netted off rose 2.8% year-on-year to approximately 211,000 tonnes, representing 5% of the market. This was due to high demand for biomass feedstock in Europe.
- Usage in small scale biomass remained static at 90,000 tonnes, representing 2% of the market.
Julia Turner, Executive Director of the WRA, said: “These figures show the UK waste wood market remains balanced and in great shape with well-developed and environmentally compliant markets for all domestic material.
“We are very proud to say that nearly all waste wood is being utilised, with only a very tiny fraction being sent to informal markets, such as being burnt on bonfire night, or being sent to landfill. In this way our sector plays an important role in supporting the circular economy, net zero and energy security in the UK.”
“For our industry to maintain this performance in 2025, it is important that sites are able to store material over the summer months for when it is most needed. This is why we are calling for the Environment Agency to ensure that its recently-announced Regulatory Position Statement 352 is not too restrictive, and allows waste wood to be stored safely and compliantly for long enough that it can be used through the coming winter.”
To accompany these statistics, the WRA today unveiled the sector’s latest carbon emissions savings figures.
These show that the UK panel board sector sequestered 1.09 million tonnes of carbon in 2024 through its use of recycled wood in chipboard*.
And, waste wood biomass continued to save 701,000 tonnes of carbon emissions in 2024 when compared to the likely displaced generation, with the potential to save 3.6 million tonnes with carbon capture and storage (CCS)**.
Julia said: “Our latest carbon savings figures highlight how our sector is helping to drive down emissions by both locking away carbon in panel board products and displacing fossil fuels. Our contribution is even greater if you take in account the carbon savings achieved through other recycling and reuse, which we hope to report on in future.”
*Source: Wood Panel Industries Federation
** Figures calculated using a model independently verified by Kiwa.