MWDA steps up crackdown on HWRC abuse

Schemes like this already operate all over the country and we know from the success of our Wirral pilot that they can have a real impact on Merseyside too

 
Carl Beer, MWDA

The scheme will see drivers of vans, pick-ups and large trailers requiring a free permit in order to deposit household waste at the recycling centres at Southport, Formby, Sefton Meadows, South Sefton and Otterspool.

Introduction of the scheme at these sites follows a successful trial of the system at three sites on the Wirral in September 2009 (see letsrecycle.com story) , which the Merseyside Waste Disposal Authority (MWDA) claims led to a 7% drop in waste delivered to the sites, with builders' rubble collected there down by 26%.

The MWDA – which covers Liverpool, Sefton, the Wirral, Knowsley and St Helens – introduced the service to curb the practice of commercial traders using the household waste and recycling centres (HWRCs) to dispose of waste in order to avoid paying Landfill Tax. The material would then be removed by the MWDA at Council Tax payer's expense.

Commenting on the scheme, councillor Kevin Cluskey, chair of the MWDA, said: “There is no perfect solution to stop traders trying to get onto our sites, but a number of waste authorities are already operating similar initiatives around the country and have found that permit schemes are the best weapon in the war against the abusers.”

Permits

Householders visiting the sites in a saloon car or people carrier will not need a permit unless they have blanked out windows or permanently removed seats. Applicants for permits need to supply their name, address and vehicle details to the MWDA to acquire one of the free permits.

The HWRCs are currently operated by waste management firm Veolia Environmental Services, which was awarded a 20-year contract to manage the 14 MWDA sites in June 2009 (see letsrecycle.com story).

Carl Beer, director at the MWDA, added: “Schemes like this already operate all over the country and we know from the success of our Wirral pilot that they can have a real impact on Merseyside too.”

“We hope that householders will appreciate that the scheme is trying to stop ‘freeloaders' who are effectively being subsidised by local Council Tax payers.”

Issues of trade waste abuse at recycling centres on Merseyside emerged in December 2008, when two employees at the Bidston centre were disciplined following an internal investigation into “serious allegations” of trade waste being disposed of on the site (see letsrecycle.com story).