15 June 2011 Debate has raged following the UK government's publication of the long awaited Waste Review, in which it unveiled its intention to adopt a light touch approach to achieving its goal of a 'zero waste economy'.
The proposals have broadly been met with approval from business leaders and the waste management industry, who welcome the government's focus of recycling, waste to energy technologies and illegal exports.
Waste management company Viridor says that it is pleased that the waste policy review indicates a clear and consistent, yet 'light touch', approach, acknowledging that the current main drivers are proving effective.
Speaking exclusively to Waste Management World, Viridor external affairs manager, Dan Cook said:
"We welcome the light touch that was promised, we don't think that we needed more over burdensome targets and regulations. Consistency is what we've been saying we want as an industry and as a company. We think the momentum is moving in the right direction. We can pick up the pace in terms of recycling, and we welcome the acknowledgement that energy from waste has a clear role to play and we think those should be the two main focuses that will help us move forward in the way we want to."
Cook went on to explain that there has been too much focus on municipal waste, and that the review's ambitions with regard to commercial and industrial recycling are a positive move.
However, he warned that landfill bans are likely to be a distraction that will be problematic to regulate and are rendered unnecessary by the landfill tax.
Furthermore, the UK is losing a largely renewable fuel through exports of residual waste to other countries, and the government should address this issue to help provide the certainty needed for continued investment in UK waste infrastructure, he added.
"We welcome the renewed focus on recycling and recovery of commercial wastes. The UK has made good progress towards higher levels of recycling, recovery and resource efficiency over the last decade, and we need to keep this momentum going," said Viridor chief executive Colin Drummond.
The positive sentiments on the government's commitment to waste to energy was also welcomed by Covanta Energy UK, with managing director, Malcolm Chilton, explaining that the government has committed to working with the industry to promote the benefits of waste to energy and to remove the barriers to its development.
"The review will provide a basis for working towards the goal of zero waste to landfill. The government has recognised that Energy from Waste has an important part to play in meeting its objectives by delivering environmental, climate change and economic benefits through using the energy resource locked into residual waste that would otherwise end up in landfill," Chilton added.
Meanwhile, waste management company, Shanks Group Plc, has called on Government to be more assertive if it is serious about making a zero waste economy a reality.
Shanks chief executive Tom Drury said:
"There is a lot we could learn from our neighbours north of the border who are planning to adopt much tougher targets that make the vision for a 'zero waste' society a realistic possibility rather than just lofty ambitions. Outright bans on landfill for specific waste types, separate collection of food waste and restrictions on input to mass burn energy from waste facilities are just some of the measures planned in Scotland that England could adopt."
No Return to Weekly Collections In it's response to the waste review, Biffa, which provides recycling, refuse and street cleansing services said that it was pleased to see that there will be no enforced return to enforced weekly collections.
In a muted welcome to the review, Pete Dickson, Biffa's municipal development director, said: "We need to see the fine detail behind some of the Review's initiatives before we can give it a thumb's up - or a thumb's down."
However, Dickson welcomed Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman's statement that government cannot act alone and must work in partnership with local government, industry, consumers and communities.
"We broadly welcome the direction that the Waste Policy Review is taking, but would have liked to have seen a more ambitious set of commitments - such as undertaking to increase municipal food waste collections," added, Biffa chief executive Ian Wakelin.
This was a mood echoed by Friends of the Earth's waste campaigner Julian Kirby who said
"Cash-strapped councils will be relieved Ministers have ditched ludicrous proposals to force them to provide weekly bin rounds - fortnightly collections are cheaper, encourage recycling and are popular with householders. The roll-out of weekly food waste pick-ups will help make use of the nation's food scraps - something we've been backing for many years."
In a stinging critisim of the document, , Friends of the Earth went on to add that the review displays an embarrassing lack of new ideas and ambition, and will not help deliver the 'zero waste economy' the government claims it is aiming for.
"The Government has spent a year reviewing its approach to rubbish - at vast public expense - and all it's managed to do is reduce its ambition, recycle old ideas and dump its commitment to a zero waste economy. Ministers should be helping cut waste and boost recycling - but they've produced a half-hearted document that takes waste policy back in time," Kirby concluded.
However, National Fly-tipping Prevention Group member, the Countryside Alliance has criticised the minimal attention given to tackling the scourge of fly-tipping, despite the maintenance of fortnightly bin collections. Chief executive, Alice Barnard said:
"Of course the focus is on household bins, but this report misses the likely consequences of retaining fortnightly collections in the countryside: a higher incidence of fly-tipping. With well over half of all fly-tips involving household waste; we believe this figure can only increase, putting more pressure on the limited resources of local authorities, who are responsible for clearing up this blight.
Also commenting on review's handling of refuse collection, Julian Gaylor, managing drector of Envac UK Ltd, a manufacturer of underground vacuum waste management systems said:
"Waste collection does not need to be confined to weekly or even bi-weekly cycles and the interest in the government's U-turn on weekly waste collection highlights the UK's reluctance to embrace new technologies. The technology required to help meet the government's carbon reduction targets and reduce waste to landfill is available. We just need the UK to be open to change."
Actions Speak Louder than Words The British Metals Recycling Association (BMRA) has also expressed its disappointment at the government's 'toothless' review.
Speaking to Waste Management World, BMRA director general Ian Hetherington said: "The review completely lacks teeth, lacks substance and lacks detail. With most of the issues, although we set out a very clear agenda for the review, they're all there, but they're no further forward than they were a year ago."
Hetherington did however welcome the increased focus on enforcing unlicensed and illegal waste sites, and the plans to reduce the burden of compliance on legitimate businesses: both things which the BMRA focussed upon during the review's consultation process.
"We need to see a change in the treasury rules that will enable the Environment Agency to use the fees that it generates to stamp out illegal operators. They haven't made that announcement. They've said that they will put more emphasis on stamping out illegal operators, but that's a broad intention with no detail," he told Waste Management World.
The call to move beyond rhetoric and into action was also echoed by the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE).
"The government's commitment to a resource efficient economy that will unlock the true value of our waste is to be commended; however it is crucial that we now see these commitments translated into action," said Chair of ICE's Waste and Resources Management Panel, Phil Butler.
ICE also highlighted the need for the government to focus on both the quality and quantity of recycled materials if it is serious in its desire for a 'zero waste economy'. This says ICE, will ensure that the UK gets the maximum environmental and economic benefits from recycling by meeting the increasingly stringent quality standards demanded by end users of materials.
However, the Institution also said that the government's policy does address one of the biggest issues in the waste sector - the availability of information.
"To attract in private funding for waste infrastructure, investors need to be able to see a clear business case. A lack of information about the capacity of existing facilities, the different technologies and waste arisings has been problematic in the past, so we welcome the commitment to improve this. This will help bring forward much needed private investment," explained Butler.
The engineering body also expressed disappointment that the government has ruled out more energy from waste projects being fast-tracked through the Infrastructure Planning Commission, a policy that it claims would have seen nationally significant schemes move forward more quickly.
Meanwhile, Spencer Feldman, CEO of household waste collection specialist, Waste Concern said that the review that gives little clear clarification as to what actions will now be taken, and expressed his disappointing that the government has not matched the efforts of those in the private sector with any meaningful commitments of its own.
Feldman explained that it is right to think about the source of waste, consumption and recycling - but added that this does not solve the issue of the waste that we do throw away.
"I strongly believe that waste industry privatisation is the way forward; let us take over from councils and run the service like a utility. Surely councils will want to be rid of what is not only a burdensome job from an administrative perspective but also a very costly one," he said
Voluntary Schemes The implementation of voluntary schemes proposed by the review has also drawn the attention of commentators. John Twitchen, managing director at environmental consultancy, Sauce Consultancy explained that in order to be effective, the policies outlined in the review will need to be supported by both the public, and industry.
"Business support for the Courtauld Commitment demonstrates the art of the possible. But it will also need commitment from local councillors to ensure the infrastructure necessary to deliver a zero waste economy is in place, and to ensure that their locality benefits from what is going to be a huge investment in the new, green economy."
Twitchen went on to add that the review is a useful starting point for what he expects to be several years of positive engagement with industry and local communities - vital parts of the transition to a zero waste economy.
The Aluminium Packaging Recycling Organisation (Alupro), however, noted that it is interesting that the government appears to have ruled out the introduction of a deposit scheme to drive packaging recycling and has instead floated the idea of a voluntary agreement to specifically promote the recycling of metal packaging.
The organisation said that it has given a cautious welcome to the review, but insists that government must go further to meet its zero-waste economy ambitions. Commenting on the review's commitment to prioritising the materials that can deliver the biggest environmental benefit, Alupro executive director Rick Hindley said:
"It's great that the Waste Policy Review commits to prioritise recycling materials like aluminium that can bring the biggest environmental benefits, but there is little actual policy to make sure that this happens."
He added that many of the ambitions outlined in the review are in line with the metal packaging industry's own ambitions.
"We are delighted to see the review's endorsement of industry programmes such as Every Can Counts and metalmatters," he said. "However, the industry cannot continue to shoulder the burden of promoting metal recycling alone. With further support from government and other key stakeholders the recycling rates for these materials could be even better."
Anaerobic Digestion Reacting to the Waste Review and the Anaerobic Digestion Strategy and Action Plan, ADBA Chief Executive Charlotte Morton explained that the AD Strategy and Action Plan are important staging posts in the development of anaerobic digestion in the UK.
According to Morton, AD has the potential to grow into a £2 billion industry generating a fifth of the UK's domestic gas and replacing around a quarter of carbon intensive artificial fertiliser with digestate - and food waste from homes and businesses represents over 70% of that potential.
"We therefore welcome the Waste Review's recognition that AD offers the greatest environmental benefit of any organic waste treatment, and look forward to the consultation on banning biodegradable waste from landfill - action which should be taken sooner rather than later," she said.
However, having recognised that AD is the best option, ADBA said that the Government should have been bolder and called for as much organic waste to be treated through AD as possible.
The organisation said that it was also disappointed by the lack of recognition of the importance of source-segregating food waste, in reducing waste arising, allowing easier recycling of products from other materials such as plastics, and creating a quality fertiliser from AD which will help decarbonise food production.
"While we would have liked to see a clearer strategy to prioritise source-segregated food waste for AD, the actions which have been identified - many of which ADBA will be leading on - should help make it easier to grow the industry. Developments such as a best practice scheme for AD will ultimately help break down barriers to plant development, reduce the risk of investing in AD and deliver the industry's potential to UK plc," Morton added.
Matthew Venn, Associate Consultant at global environmental consultancy WSP Environment & Energy, commented that the review does not appear to represent the step-change in government policy which had been hoped for.
"Government support for energy from waste projects, such as anaerobic digestion, is extremely welcome, and is a significant change to policy from the last government, which remained somewhat neutral in this area. The recovery of energy from non-recyclable and organic waste can make a valuable contribution to the supply of renewable energy, the security of that energy and, possibly most importantly, reduce CO2 emissions resulting from landfills," he said.
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