New LARAC chair Andy Doran wrote to Margaret Beckett to provide the thoughts of Local Authority officers as the government considers Strategy Unit proposals to re-shape waste management in England.
Although the Strategy Unit did recommend that local authorities be given the freedom to bring in variable charges on household waste in order to encourage recycling, Mr Doran said that LARAC members did not feel this went far enough.
The LARAC chair wrote: “Many LARAC members feel strongly that despite the opportunities to charge for waste services afforded to local authorities in the SU report we will have to make recycling a ‘compulsory’ rather than voluntary exercise.”
Charging
Mr Doran added: “If allowed such powers, LARAC believes that variable charging schemes that truly support recycling (rather than simply penalising household consumption) can be successfully implemented.”
He went on to say that even with the present Environmental Protection Act, local authorities have the power to refuse to take waste where people have not placed recyclables in the correct container. However, he said that at present councils are unlikely to take such action because of local politics.
The LARAC chair said that there is a lot of concern among local authorities that despite the Strategy Unit's waste review, “business will carry on very much as usual” unless a change to funding structures is implemented.
“Local authorities have been historically funded at a minimum level to achieve waste disposal that is safe for the environment and protective of human health,” he said. “Today’s local authority waste management operations are highly sophisticated separated and segregated recovery systems. Such new schemes cannot be funded on such old funding structures.”
LTCS
Mr Doran, who is also executive assistant to the leader at Surrey County Council, applauded the government's plans to divert two-thirds of Landfill Tax Credit Scheme funds into public sustainable waste management projects.
“LARAC welcomes the recommendation that two-thirds of this funding source should be directed to the public sector and we urge Government to stand firm against the no doubt strong industry and vested interests lobbying,” he said.
The government has said it believes putting around 100m a year from the LTCS into sustainable waste management projects via the public purse will produce more value for money and a greater transparency of the distribution process (see letsrecycle.com story).
Claims that such a plan would reduce the match-funding potential of the Landfill Tax money because the LTCS would no longer count as private funds could be addressed by extending the percentage of Landfill Tax money going to the LTCS, Mr Doran said.
“LARAC believes that the contention about whether this will be public or private money could be reduced in importance by increasing the overall proportion of Landfill Tax that is reclaimable as Tax Credits from 20% to 30% – i.e. Landfill Tax credits as they are currently issued would not be so substantially reduced.”
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