Waste & recycling / Reporting
Check waste diversion
Enter weighed streams to see what share was recorded as recycling or organics.
Work plan
Diversion share
Enter at least one measured weight.
How it works
Put in your numbers
Use your own rates, times and measurements.
See your answer straight away
It works it out as you type.
Copy or print it
Send it on, or keep it with the job.
What it covers: See the share of weighed waste recorded as recycling or organics.
Free to use. No sign-in needed.
How to work out your waste diversion rate
Your diversion rate is the share of weighed waste that goes to recycling or organics instead of general waste. It helps you report to customers and see what better sorting is worth. This tracker uses your weighed amounts and optional disposal prices to show the diversion share, total weight, disposal cost and the saving from diverting.
- Choose one site, round or reporting period and gather the weights for it. Use weighbridge tickets, scale readings or invoices rather than guesses.
- Enter general waste, recycling and organics in kilograms. Only include recycling or organics accepted by the receiving facility.
- Read the diversion share. It is recycling plus organics as a share of the total recorded weight.
- If you want costs, choose your currency and enter a disposal price per tonne for each stream. One tonne is 1,000 kilograms. The cost lines appear once a general waste price is entered, and a stream left blank is costed at zero.
- Check the disposal cost and the saving from diverting. The saving compares your cost with sending the same total weight to general waste.
- Repeat for each period and compare. A rising share shows your sorting changes are working.
Tips and common mistakes
- Do not count rejected or contaminated loads as diverted. If a recycling load ended up as general waste, record it as general waste.
- Keep the boundary the same each time, such as the same site, the same round or the same length of period, so results can be compared.
- Use weighed amounts, not bin counts or volumes. A full bin of cardboard and a full bin of food waste weigh very differently.
- Check how the receiving facility and your customer define recycling and organics, and check the rules where you work if you report diversion formally.
Questions
How do you calculate waste diversion rate?
Add the weight of recycling and organics, then divide by the total weight of all waste, including general waste. Multiply by 100 for a percentage. As an illustration, 300 kg diverted out of 1,000 kg in total is a 30% diversion rate.
What counts as diverted waste?
Diverted waste is material kept out of general waste, such as recycling and organics, that the receiving facility accepts. Material that is rejected or contaminated and ends up as general waste should not count. Check what your facility and customer accept.
How much money does recycling save on disposal?
It depends on your own disposal prices for each stream. Enter the price per tonne for general waste, recycling and organics, and the tracker shows the saving from diverting. If recycling or organics cost as much as general waste where you are, there may be little or no saving.
Should I record waste in kilograms or tonnes?
Enter weights in kilograms and disposal prices per tonne. One tonne is 1,000 kilograms. Actual weighed amounts give a far more reliable result than estimates.
How often should I track waste diversion?
Track it over the same period each time, such as each week, month or round, so you compare like with like. Regular checks show whether sorting changes are working and give you numbers to share with customers.
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