The council will pay 9.8 million per year for the two-year integrated waste management contract, which will begin in August. It spent only 7.6 million in 2001-02.
The increase in price will cover plans for more garden waste composting, fridge and freezer storage for recycling and the company's take over and “substantial upgrading” of the operation of the county's household recycling centres. It also provides for the disposal of Gloucestershire's 200,000 tonnes of municipal waste.
Adrian Judge, general manager of Cory Environmental (Gloucestershire), the waste management subsidiary of Exel, said that it was important for his company to win the contract.
“It costs more, but there is a great deal more on offer,” he said. “The council now has a one-stop-shop for its waste management requirements and will benefit from short term and immediate investment in recycling.”
The improvements to the household recycling centres in particular is intended to help Gloucestershire meet its target recycling rate of 36% by 2006. It currently recycles 14% of its refuse. The centres, have a recycling rate of 35%, and the council aims to increase this to 55% by the end of the two years.
Municipal waste managed under the terms of the contract will be delivered to two landfill sites which contain garden waste composting facilities. The sites – at Hempstead and Wingmoor Farm– have both recently received ISO 14001 certification, an environmental management system standard.
In 2004, the interim two-year contract is due to be superseded by a long-term waste contract which Cory says will be designed to “integrate with the county and district councils' plans to increase recycling.”
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