Confirming the progress of the report, Dr Paul Hollinshead, team leader at the Strategy Unit, said last night that it is possible the report will be published in the last week of November. One option, he told letsrecycle.com, was that it could be published around the time of the Chancellor’s statement on the Public Sector Borrowing Requirement, although this was by no means certain.
Addressing guests and members at the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management annual Parliamentary reception, Dr Hollinshead, the guest speaker for the event, explained the background to the study. “Waste is quite an important and growing issue in the UK but it is an invisible issue,” he said.
MORI poll
Dr Hollinshead explained that the Unit had commissioned a MORI poll into how waste and recycling were perceived and the full findings would be in the report. But, he commented that it was surprising that in terms of the environment, only 5% of people saw waste as an issue whereas in terms of a public service from local authorities, 95% saw it as important.
After highlighting the amount of waste landfilled in the UK, Dr Hollinshead said that “40-50% of it can easily be recycled.” And he warned that the UK is “landfilling more than ever and getting further away from the directives Europe is placing on us”.
Details of the Strategy Unit report are still confidential but Dr Hollinshead appeared to suggest that lessons had been learnt by the Unit team on visits to Europe. He noted that Europe was some 10-15 years ahead of the UK.
It does not appear that the report will be prescriptive in nature. Instead, Dr Hollinshead emphasised that the aim of the study “is to lay out options and say which is the right package and direction that allows for change in the future.”
Possibly hinting that there will be proposals for at least trials of different collection methods and direct or variable charging, Dr Hollinshead told his audience that there would also be a focus on delivery of services on the ground, rather than on ways to manage waste.
Among the barriers to progress he cited, were a lack of leadership and the need for extra funding, adding that there was also a lack of tools for waste minimisation.
Ending on an optimistic note, Dr Hollinshead, referring to the 140m DEFRA fund, said: “There are reasons to be optimistic. It has been recognised that there is a problem and the Treasury has allocated funds before our report has been published.” And, he noted that one local authority was already achieving a 42% recycling rate.
Funding
Peter Ager, president of the CIWM, thanked Dr Hollinshead for addressing the reception. He went on to say that all involved in waste management were aware of the problems posed partly because of insufficient funding. Mr Ager also advocated changes to the Landfill Tax Credits Scheme to make sure funds are available for waste management and recycling initiatives.
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