ADEPT announces Steve Palfrey as next chair

Mr Palfrey, assistant director for waste and environment at Suffolk county council, will take over from January 2021. He will represent ADEPT at a national level, including on stakeholder groups for the government’s Resources and Waste Strategy.

Mr Palfrey said: “I’m looking forward to my new role as chair of ADEPT’s waste group at this critical time when the expectations on local authorities, the waste services we provide to residents and the funding we receive are all about to fundamentally change in support of the circular economy.

“Ian Fielding has been a fantastic chair and his contribution over the years has been massive. I and all the waste group wish him well for the future.”

A former chair of the National Association of Waste Disposal Officers (NAWDO), Mr Palfrey also spent five years as a member of the national executive of Local Authority Recycling Advisory Committee (LARAC) (see letsrecycle.com story).

He has worked in local government for 25 years, mostly in waste management. Mr Palfrey had spells at Essex, Dorset and Somerset county councils before joining Suffolk in 2010.

ADEPT

ADEPT represents local authority county, unitary and metropolitan directors. Its members are responsible for delivering public services that primarily relate to the physical environment and the economy, but which also have a significant impact on all aspects of the nation’s well-being.

Mr Fielding, who is retiring from North Yorkshire county council, was a member of ADEPT’s waste group for 15 years, becoming chair in 2016.

Praising Mr Fielding, ADEPT’s president Nigel Riglar said: “I would like to thank Ian for his hard work as chair of the waste group. He has steered the group through select committee appearances and provided leadership at a time when there has been increased attention on how we manage our consumption, waste, plastics and the drive for a truly circular economy.

“I would also like to recognise how Ian has led the group through the pandemic, working with Defra, providing evidence on the experience of local authorities and working with our partners in compiling the waste survey through the first period of national lockdown.”