Matthew Pencharz replaces former environment advisor Kulveer Ranger who held the position since April 2011 (see letsrecycle.com story) but has now left the Mayors office. Mr Pencharz will also be responsible for coordinating work in areas such as improving Londons air quality and protecting green spaces.
The appointment comes amid a wider shake-up at City Hall which is also set to see James Cleverly leave his role as chair of the London Waste and Recycling Board (LWaRB), the body which distributes funding to waste projects in the capital. Mr Cleverly is to become chairman of the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority.
In a statement, the LWaRB told letsrecycle.com: James will remain the Chair of LWaRB until the Mayor appoints a successor. A decision on the next Chair of LWARB will be made by the summer.
Recycling
Mr Pencharz comes to his new role as environment advisor after Mr Johnson was accused in the run up to the electionof barely increasing the capitals recycling rate during his first term in office (see letsrecycle.com story).
The Mayors new advisor will need to help with the delivery of the Mayors waste and recycling strategies, which were published in November 2011 (see letsrecycle.com story). Theyinclude a 60% recycling target by 2031.
Advisor
Mr Pencharz was the Mayors political advisor during his first term. Prior to joining the Mayors team he spent three years working on the BBCs Politics Show, where he focused primarily on environment and energy stories. Following this Mr Pencharz became a producer on the networks Breakfast show where he was responsible for the programmes political output.
During his time in office, Mr Ranger led the development of the Mayors six statutory environmental strategies including his 20-year business and municipal waste strategies and was involved with the launch of the Recycle for London communication campaign.
Commenting on Mr Ranger’s departure, Mr Johnson said: I want to also pay fulsome tribute to Kulveer Ranger, who is leaving City Hall to take on fresh challenges. Kulveer has been a core member of my team over the last four years, taking on both transport and environmental challenges to deliver a raft of world beating programmes.
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