LARAC and ESA oppose higher recycling targets

There is little support among councils and the waste sector for the introduction of higher national recycling targets from government in England until existing targets are met, responses to a Parliamentary inquiry on waste have shown.

This was among the points raised by LARAC and the ESA in response to a call for evidence by the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (EfRA) select committee over Defras decision to step back on its activities in the sector (see letsrecycle.com story). The inquiry closed for written submissions of evidence last week (May 8).

But, the Environmental Services Association (ESA) said it was disappointed that the Committees inquiry seemed to focus on the bottom of the waste hierarchy rather than on prevention and reuse where the greatest environmental gains lie.

Summarising its response to the inquiry, the ESA also noted its concern about flatlining recycling rates in England, adding that more investment in infrastructure was needed but that it wouldnt be sensible to introduce new national recycling targets.

The Environmental Services Association (ESA) also raised concerns about the variation in recycling performance among English councils in its response to the EFRA committee inquiry, adding that it would not support the introduction of new national recycling targets.

Targets

ESA economist Jacob Hayler said: Under these circumstances it wouldnt be sensible to introduce new national targets, which may in any event be overtaken by the forthcoming targets review due to be published by the European Commission next month.

Mr Hayler added that evidence from Europe suggested that high levels of EfW could happily coexist with high recycling rates demonstrating that there isnt a trade-off between the two.

Elsewhere, he called for greater investment in infrastructure and advance warning of the introduction of any landfill bans, but urged against introducing a ban on incineration.

Mr Hayler said: England desperately needs continued investment in alternative treatment infrastructure to landfill as we are currently heading for undercapacity and ongoing reliance on RDF exports to meet our landfill diversion requirements. In this context, it would be unwise to introduce incineration bans which would undermine investment in new capacity. Any proposals for landfill bans would need to be signalled well in advance with provisions for alternative infrastructure put in place.

LARAC

Meanwhile, the Local Authority Recycling Advisory Committee (LARAC), which represents recycling officers across the UK, claimed that a push to impose weekly waste collections represented a threat to efforts to raise recycling rates in England.

And, LARAC said that the government should not set higher recycling targets until the UK has met the statutory European target to reach 50% recycling by 2020, fearing that tight budgets at many councils could hamper their ability to meet new targets.

It noted that recycling rates may drive up the collection of material for recycling rather than minimising waste, and states that recycling rates are not useful, especially in the current climate due to the constrained budgets of many local authorities. LARAC also put forward its view that local authorities should have the power to set their own recycling goals due to the large variation in performance between councils in England.

The organisation also criticised Defra for failing to take a lead on waste policies in England, highlighting the effectiveness of strong policy direction from the Scottish and Welsh governments as examples.

It added: If Defra takes a backward step, there is a danger that other government departments may plug the gap without a proper consideration of environmental impact of policies.

Elsewhere, LARAC said it had no objection to the principle of introducing landfill bans for materials which have alternative cost effective and sustainable recycling methods available, as long as the government provided support to ensure strong recycling markets.

It also called for support from the government towards introducing more district heating schemes, adding that it is vital to use heat from energy-from-waste (EfW) plants in order to achieve higher efficiencies like those seen in Europe.