The government is to lay the Local Government (Best Value) Performance Standards Order 2001 before Parliament by March 9 or earlier.
It will refer to municipal waste management strategy guidelines and will include targets for local authorities in an annexe.
The waste management strategy guidelines will be published in advance. A short consultation period is planned at the beginning of February.
Background and some detailed information on the targets see the
consultation paper issued last September. It is understood that the details in the consultation paper are actually more accurate than those in the final version produced by the DETR!
A relevant section of the consultation said that Performance Standards For Household Waste Recycling And Composting
for 2003, 2005 and 2010 would be introduced in April 2001and will apply to the financial years
2003/04 and 2005/06.
The consultation paper said: “The waste strategy also included a commitment to introduce statutory
performance standards for 2010. We do not feel that sufficient information is available at
present to set standards for individual authorities for 2010/11 at this stage. We propose that
these standards should be introduced in April 2006, following the planned review of the waste
strategy in 2005. They will be consistent with the target the Government has set, to achieve
an overall level of household waste recycling of at least 30% by 2010.”
These standards will apply to the total of indicators “BVPI82a”, which is the total percentage tonnage of household
waste recycled, and similarly to BVPI82b – the total percentage tonnage of household waste
composted.
The consultation paper continued: “Waste Strategy 2000 proposed that standards should apply to Waste Disposal Authority
areas. Given the essential role that Waste Collection Authorities play in increasing recycling,
the Government now proposes that standards should apply individually to WCAs and WDAs.
“However, we would strongly encourage authorities in the geographical area of a WDA,
including any relevant unitary authorities, to pool their targets and work together to achieve
them. Authorities should in any case be developing Municipal Waste Management
Strategies covering the WDA area.
“Standards will be set based on recycling and composting rates in the 1998/99 Municipal
Waste Survey”.
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