Written by Simon Harms and Stephen C. Tupper

Introduction

On 22 September 2011 the Office of Fair Trading (the “OFT”) published a market study on the state of competition in the organic waste sector in England and Wales (the “Market Study”) which was instigated at the request of the Water Services Regulation Authority (“Ofwat”) in the context of its ongoing comprehensive review of how it regulates the water industry.

Scope and findings

The Market Study covers the treatment of all types of organic waste which the OFT categorises into two broad types: sewage sludge (“SS”) which falls within Ofwat’s regulatory ambit; and other organic waste (“OOW”) such as slurries, manure and food and drink waste, the treatment of which is not directly regulated by Ofwat. The OFT examined the markets for the treatment of organic waste from three distinct angles:

• competition between statutory water and sewerage companies (“WaSCs”) for the treatment of SS;
• competition between WaSCs and other waste management companies for the treatment of SS; and
• competition between WaSCs and other waste management companies for the treatment of OOW.
  Continue Reading OFT organic waste market study: file and forget or pretext for change?