“This is fantastic news,” said county councillor Derrick Ashley, executive member for environment. “I’d like to thank Hertfordshire residents for doing their bit to reduce the pressure on landfill sites in and around the county, by separating their rubbish.”
With Hertfordshire now facing what is sees as a “challenging target” – to recycle or compost 30% of household waste by 2005/6 – Cllr Ashley highlighted future plans to compost more garden waste and collect glass for recycling.
“It's a tough target to meet, but over the next year we are expanding and improving kerbside collections to help people separate and recycle more of their waste, like garden waste and glass. We are also developing processing facilities which will both support collections and turn compostible waste into a useful product. The county is in a strong position, as with the continued support and participation of residents, we are well on our way to achieving it,” said Councillor Ashley.
Mick Shaw, operations manager for Hertfordshire, told letsrecycle.com that the partnership arrangement between the county and the districts is an important factor in the recycling success. “We have found thatcombining together has a number of advantages. It makes it easier for us to get local contractors involved who can give us reasonable prices for the material. We are moving down the road to finding outlets for the materials and most districts are with us on this.”
The authority is starting to look ahead to 2008 and is preparing a plan for the way forward as most of the existing contarcts expire in 2008. Part of the process for the county is working with the districts to ensure that facilities which the districts want can be provided.
Other current initiatives include a tender which has been issued for the supply of animal byproduct composting facilities which meet legislative requirements.
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