Local authorities raise concern over ELV regulation delay

New regulations – establishing how car producers will pay for their vehicles to be recycled to the targets set by the Directive – have yet to be finalised, despite the DTI's expectations that they would be placed before Parliament last summer.

Under the regulations, motor manufacturers will organise their own networks of authorised treatment facilities (ATFs) with the capacity to recycle the vehicles of their own brand that come to the end of their lives.

The new producer responsibility arrangements will cover all ELVs from January 2007. Until 2007, the cost of treating vehicles is to be covered by the last owner – in the case of abandoned vehicles, by local authorities. The government has provided 25 million each year over the next three years to cover these “new burdens”, however.

But for councils, the delay to the new ELV regulations means they cannot sign best value long-term contracts with recycling companies to take abandoned vehicles. Council officers have told letsrecycle.com they are having to sign temporary short-term contracts because they do not yet know which ATFs will have funding provided by the motor manufacturers for 2007 onwards.

Frustration
Although the high price of scrap means that an increase in abandoned vehicle numbers is not being seen on the ground, the delays to the new regulations has been the cause of “much frustration”, councils have said.

Julian Lucraft, at West Sussex county council, told letsrecycle.com that he knew of councils who have been caught up in the difficulties. Mr Lucraft said: “Local authorities are looking very carefully at what might happen, but they don't want to let a contract to a company if it doesn't receive a contract with a manufacturer.

“They may offer a shorter contract with six-month extensions, but they can't offer more than that.”

The delay to the regulations is thought to have been caused by a debate between government departments over the issue of ATFs who have no contract with motor manufacturers being forced to reach recycling targets for the ELVs they process.

Neil Marshall, director-general of the British Metals Recycling Association, said that it was not tenable for uncontracted ATFs to pay for meeting recycling targets at no cost to the last owner. He said: “If the contracted network is adequate, then by virtue of this it would be appropriate for uncontracted ATFs to charge for depollution.”

Shredder residues
Next month sees the passing of a deadline set by the Environment Agency for all ELVs to be depolluted to the standards set by Defra before shredder residues can be sent to non-hazardous landfill sites. The BMRA believes the results of tests on shredder residues will be known in November, and that a “full depollute will be non-hazardous”.

Despite some uncertainties that have arisen in testing shredder residues for their hazardous nature, the BMRA director-general said he expects the deadline to be met on time. And, Mr Marshall said local authorities could be reassured there “won't be a problem with vehicles from November”, although if the price of scrap steel fell there would be increased charges.