The UK's SMEs will throw away £463m this year by sending waste to landfill that could be recycled, according to Veolia Environmental Services.
By 2014 if recycling rates don't improve this could amount to nearly £1bn in landfill tax in just two years.
These new figures will ring alarm bells with all small and medium sized businesses, reflecting that on 1 April the landfill tax will rise from £64 to £72 per tonne and is anticipated to rise again in 2014/15 to £80 per tonne, said Veolia's chief executive Estelle Brachlianoff.
“We have now reached a stage where it is much more expensive to send waste to landfill than it is to recycle,” she said. “Business need to realise that it's not just an environmental decision, it's an economic one with immediate benefits to the bottom line.
“In this time of austerity businesses are throwing money away when they could be more sustainable and reduce their bills at the same time.”