SEPA to support environment sector
The plan is designed to help businesses acknowledge the economic benefits of environmental practices during the current economic difficulties. Plans include waiving application fees for new environmental licenses, paying out creditors faster and limiting the increase in prices for environmental licenses from April 1 2009, as well as longer-term initiatives such as establishing a ‘challenge fund' for environmental technology and the development of the technology sector as a whole in Scotland.
SEPA's chief executive, Campbell Gemmell, said: “The health and well-being of people in Scotland is closely linked to the quality of their local environment. We will be targeting action at specific 'hot-spots' in rural and urban environments, aiming to help communities and businesses transform their local areas, benefitting both the environment and the economy.”
Third interactive safety CD launched
The 'Streetsafe Sam' CD is based on a ‘day in the life' of a waste management operative and includes exercises on hazard spotting, waste sorting, manual handling and dealing with the public. At the end of the programme, a certificate is awarded and a report indicates any areas for improvement. 'Streetsafe Sam Module 3 – Commercial & Industrial Dry Waste Collection' follows previous instalments which looked at domestic waste collection and civic amenity sites, with all three modules designed to complement existing in-house training. For more information and for a free copy of the CD, visit the EU Skills website.
Paul Thornber, health and safety manager for Veolia Environmental Services, said: “The waste management industry has thousands of operatives working in various fields and the interactive CD Roms featuring Streetsafe Sam are a great way of getting simple, key health and safety messages to all these men and women across the country.”
Defra commissions Clothing Roadmap projects
Defra has revealed the identities of the organisations that will be responsible for undertaking the three Evidence Projects that form a major part of its Sustainable Clothing Roadmap.
The projects, which are now underway, include a study on 'Maximising reuse and recycling of UK clothing and textiles', which is being run by Buckinghamshire-based consultancy Oakdene Hollins. At the same time, French consultancy Bio Intelligence Services will examine 'Reducing the environmental impact of clothes cleaning' and researchers from Leeds and Leicester's De Montfort universities will look at 'The role and business case for existing & emerging fibres in sustainable clothing'.
Announcing the details of the organisations to stakeholders in the Roadmap process, the Defra lead for the project, Dr Dorothy Maxwell, said: “All of these projects have been through a competitive commissioning process over the past few months with a very high standard of proposals received.”
The Roadmap held its last meeting in March 2008 (see letsrecycle.com story), and its next session is expected to be held in February 2009.
West Lothian adds new trucks to vehicle fleet
Supplied by Broxburn-based dealer Wester Commercial, the five 26-tonne Mercedes Econic 2629LLs are set to add to the council's current fleet of around 150 vehicles, 25 of which are refuse trucks. The new vehicles have air-conditioned low-entry cabs, BlueTec engines that meet Euro 5 emissions standards which do not come into force until October 2009, and rear-steer axles to offer extra manoeuvrability. The first unit is already in service, with the remaining four scheduled to follow over the coming weeks.
Robert De Bold, West Lothian's executive councillor for the environment, said: “Our investment in these new refuse trucks highlights our commitment to achieving a 40 per cent recycling rate by 2010. It is important to us that we provide our employees with first class equipment and these new trucks have proved popular with crews, given their comfort and practical features.”
Sandwell to phase out bagged collections
Sandwell metropolitan borough council has announced that it is going to replace its pre-booked bag collection service for garden waste with free wheeled bins across the borough following the initial success of the scheme at boosting recycling.
The council announced that the fortnightly free garden waste wheeled bin collection scheme, which was initially launched in 2005 and expanded throughout the borough in April 2007, had played an important part in the council achieving a 25% recycling and composting rate for 2007/08 and will now replace the bagged collection service fully. Final collections under the bagged collection service will be taking place during the first week of December, with residents who have recently used the bagged service being contacted in writing to be offered a free garden waste wheeled bin.
Councillor Mahboob Hussain, Sandwell's cabinet member for neighbourhoods and housing, said: “Before the introduction of the garden waste wheeled bin service we operated a bookable bagged collection service where residents would bag up their garden waste and call the council to collect it. This service is still in operation for a small number of residents, however, demand has fallen significantly but collection costs have risen, therefore it makes sense to standa
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