To consider the progress made to date in relation to the Gloucestershire Joint Waste Committee Action Plan.

70.1           Attention was drawn to the report on the Gloucestershire Joint Waste Committee Action Plan, circulated at Pages No. 37-46.  Members were asked to consider the progress made in relation to the Action Plan during 2015/16. 

70.2           The Environmental and Housing Services Group Manager explained that Tewkesbury Borough Council had joined the Gloucestershire Joint Waste Committee (GJWC) at the end of 2014.  The GJWC Action Plan replaced the individual plans of each of the member authorities and therefore superseded the Tewkesbury Borough Annual Waste and Recycling Plan which had been monitored by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee since June 2012.  Rachel Capon, the Contracts Team Leader for the Gloucestershire Joint Waste Team explained that the GJWC had been monitoring the Council’s contract with Ubico since the transfer of its waste services in April 2015.  Monthly meetings were held to discuss service delivery, problem areas, communications etc. and health and safety of the contract was also monitored with different crews followed on a monthly basis to ensure that they were following the procedures set out by Ubico.  In terms of the monitoring of the Grundon Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) contract, new sampling laws had been introduced during 2015 and consideration had also been given to health and safety procedures; Members would be aware of the recent problems with needles being found in recyclate and GJWC was working with various agencies in order to address this e.g. Turning Point, doctor’s surgeries, pharmacies etc. 

70.3           There were a few projects in relation to communications which were specific to Tewkesbury Borough, for instance, production of recycling calendars and promotion of waste mitigation measures in Tewkesbury Borough News.  It was noted that initial results indicated that food waste collection volumes had increased by 20% following the delivery of a bin stickering campaign.  Food waste caddies had been issued for free during the campaign which had helped to increase participation.  Once the final figures had been received at the end of the month, it would be beneficial to get a message out to the public to show how much waste had been diverted from landfill. 

70.4           In terms of other work, a TEEP (Technically, Environmentally and Economically Practicable) review had been carried out at all authorities to ensure that the way material was collected fitted with the new waste regulations.  The regulations suggested that comingling did not always achieve the best recycling results with recyclate not always being made into pure materials e.g. glass being made into aggregate as opposed to a glass bottle.  The GJWC had undertaken the review and had found Tewkesbury Borough Council to be compliant with the exception of glass.  A follow-up assessment had demonstrated that it was not economically feasible to have a separate glass collection and therefore the Council’s approach was acceptable.  The waste vehicle fleet contract was due for renewal in 2017 and a service review had been carried out looking at the way the service was currently delivered and how it might be delivered in the future.  A report would be taken to the Executive Committee meeting in February which would then go to Council for consideration.  Another project currently underway was the production of a developer’s pack which was intended to assist planners and developers when designing new estates in terms of ensuring that there was appropriate access for vehicles and bin storage; this should be delivered within the current financial year.  It was noted that there was a lot of non-specific work contained within the Action Plan and this was set out in full at Appendix 1 to the report. 

70.5           A Member welcomed the developer’s pack as access for waste and emergency vehicles was a big issue on new estates and he questioned whether it would hold any weight.  The Deputy Chief Executive advised that, whilst it would not be part of the statutory planning framework, it would help to raise awareness and understanding of the impacts.  A Member noted that she had recently seen refuse crews helping one another after one of the vehicles had got stuck in the road and she had found this to be a very positive approach and something for which they should be congratulated.  The Chair thanked the Contracts Team Leader for her informative report and it was

RESOLVED          That the progress made in relation to the Gloucestershire Joint Waste Committee Action Plan during 2015/16 be NOTED.