Agenda item

The Executive Member for Community Safety and Environment submitted a report detailing options for removing card from the organic stream and how recycling performance could be increased.

The Executive recalled that, a report advising of the current problems being experienced at ‘In-Vessel’ composting sites with the treatment of cardboard collected with food and garden waste had been considered at its meeting held on 4 December 2012.  The issues had been extensively investigated by the Hertfordshire Waste Partnership, which had recommended the removal of card from the organic waste stream.  As such, all Hertfordshire Authorities were working on plans to remove card and each had different collection arrangements.

The Executive Member detailed 5 options as follows:

1 – Do nothing

2 – Cardboard collected in the black bin

3 – Cardboard Bring Banks

4 – Collecting Car with Dry Recycling – Kerbside Sort

5 – Collecting Card with Dry Recycling – Comingled

The Environment Scrutiny Committee, at its meeting held on 26 February 2013, had considered the range of options and financial implications.  The Committee had appreciated the need to make changes to the organic waste stream collection and felt that the initial costs associated with adopting Option 5 would be worth it for the additional and improved recycling service it would then offer to residents.  Members were aware of space limitations for some properties and were interested in the idea of an insert basket for separate collection of paper which could do away with the need to keep any recycling boxes.  The Committee had asked if Option 5 could be amended to offer the baskets as standard or as an option to residents subject to an amended schedule of costs being available for consideration by the Executive.  The Executive Member referred Members to this schedule, which had been tabled at the meeting.

The Executive Member proposed that the additional basket option be supported on the “opt-in” basis and referred to the additional costs assuming a 50% take up by residents.

In response to a question on whether the inner basket option could be deferred for a year, the Executive Member stated that a phased implementation would result in additional costs and that economies of scale would be achieved by reducing the number of deliveries.

The Executive supported the recommendations as now detailed.

RECOMMENDED – that (A) the comments of Environment Scrutiny Committee be received;

(B)   the options and costs for addressing the issue with cardboard collection and increasing recycling collections in the context of Council’s environmental and financial objectives be noted;

(C)   Option 5 (part-commingled collections with an inner basket being supplied on an “opt-in” basis) be adopted and a provision in the Capital Programme for 2013/14 of £2,200,000 and a one off Revenue Supplementary Estimate of £420,000 for 2013/14 only to allow for necessary changes to recycling services, be approved; and

(D)   an appropriation of £280,000 (or balance held on the waste contract reserve at 31 March 2013) in 2013/14 in order to part fund the Supplementary Estimate of £420,000 referred to in (C) above, be approved.