Agenda item

The Sustainable Waste Management Policy Officer gave a brief presentation on waste collection and recycling services. The most significant event in service for the 2006/07 year was the roll out of the twin bin scheme.

The recycling and composting target set by the government was 18% of waste collected, the target in South Kesteven was 33%. The level achieved was estimated at 30% to 33%. The service aimed to provide all households with alternate weekly collections of waste and recycling by July 2007. The amount of household waste produced decreased when the number of black bags issued per household was lowered.

Service strengths included the recycling rate per head of the population and the average cost per head for waste collection. There was a good working relationship between waste collection crews and office staff. There had been public support as many people wanted to recycle and be more environmentally aware.

Weaknesses included low levels of customer satisfaction. It was anticipated that customer satisfaction would increase when a full kerbside recycling service was available for all households. Resources were stretched because of the rural nature of the district.

Opportunities for development included the development of trade waste recycling collections, which would fill a gap in the market; the expansion of bulk waste collections for recyclables, increased education, green procurement and pursuit of external funding.

Threats identified were: the tender process for a materials recycling facility –there was no guarantee of location or cost; pressure from increased targets for recycling, reduction in landfill allowances and misunderstandings over microchips placed in wheeled bins.

Eleven collection rounds serviced 56,000 properties, however a twelfth round needed to be added to service new houses. Vehicles would be monitored to increase the resource effectiveness of working practices. Need for an additional round could be met through the reassignment of existing resources.

Despite an overspend on the salaries budget, actual spending was on target. Collection, disposal and recycling banks were on budget. Savings had been achieved by bringing vehicle maintenance in-house. Capital expenditure was under budget. The introduction of the twin bin scheme has led to a non-cashable Gershon saving: more properties received a full recycling service without any increase in resources, taking recycling figures above statutory targets.

It was estimated that targets were being achieved. It was suggested that it might be more appropriate for figures to be reported on a quarterly basis instead of monthly. Information was not received sufficiently early for monthly reporting, which meant that totals were based on estimates.

Waste Management Services aimed to gain Beacon status for waste and environmental services by 2010. This process would begin in 2008. The service sought to offer rewards for good recyclers. Local companies had been approached about supporting the scheme.

Discussion followed, based on points raised in the presentation. Any trade waste recycling scheme would be operated within existing resources. Wheeled bin procurement had been under budget because of the high cost of plastic when the tender process started. When the tender was commissioned, the cost of plastic had fallen.