During the panel discussion on Day 1 of the show, senior figures at some of the UK’s largest waste management companies discussed the impact of the repeated policy delays.
Neil Grundon, chairman of Grundon Waste Management, said with many MRFs coming to the end of their natural life in the coming years, companies need clarity before investment is made.
He said: “We’ve got a lot of legislation but nothing much seems to be happening. There’s a lot of companies sitting on their hands at the moment, ours included, especially with the DRS and EPR legislation which we don’t really know what’s going on.
“For rebuilding MRFs, that’s a big hurdle for us to cross. They’re coming to the end of their natural lives, and we need to rebuild. We’ve got the money to do it but we don’t know what we’re doing to end up collecting and how we’re going to do it. So, that’s an issue.”
The policy vacuum is slowing down investment in MRFs
- John Wilkinson, Suez
‘Vacuum’
With consistent collections potentially changing the composition of kerbside recycling coming through the system, and a deposit return scheme potentially taking plastic bottles out, MRF operators have been raising alarm bells over investment since the policies were announced.
During the panel discussion, concerns over MRF investment were also raised by John Wilkinson, chief development officer at Suez.
He remarked: “The policy vacuum is slowing down investment in MRFs. We are working are way through planning many of our facilities and it’s about trying to be able to be well equipped if policy comes to drive that forward, I think there’s been a lot of frustration on that front.”
Mr Wilkinson concluded that he feels it is “unlikely” there will be any rapid change on policy over the next 18 months.
“It seems we’re bumbling on to the next election, the cost of living seems much more prevalent than introducing new policy, so it it will be slow,” he stated.
Mr Wilkinson noted that this means customers are extended current contracts as a result.
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