Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Joint Waste Management Strategy has attacked the government for awarding it less than 3% of its total bid for 2.5 million of the 140 Waste Minimisation and Recycling Fund. And it said that contrary to government claims, it has received no indication of why its proposals were rejected, information that is vital to the re-application process for remaining funds.
The Cambridgeshire and Peterborough waste strategy partners are Cambridgeshire County Council, Cambridge and Peterborough City councils, the district councils serving East and South Cambridgeshire, Fenland and Huntingdonshire and the Environment Agency.
Guidance
Strategy coordinator Bernard Warr said: “Members of the partnership were disappointed that their work has not been recognised by DEFRA.” And although DEFRA said yesterday that all the authorities which had made unsuccessful bids had been sent guidance on where their proposals failed, the strategy claimed it has received no specific feedback on why its schemes were unsuccessful.
Strategy spokeswoman Ellee Seymour said: “The only information we have got was that we have failed. We are waiting for further guidelines.” She added that strategy members were concerned about receiving guidance soon in order to meet the September deadline for applications for funding next year.
The strategy submitted proposals for five schemes. Just one – to extend timber recycling at household waste recycling centres, worth 73,535 – was successful. The others, which included proposals for organic recycling schemes in Cambridge and Huntingdonshire, extension of three-bin collections in Peterborough and a region-wide awareness campaign, were rejected.
Worries
Ms Seymour said: “Cambridge has done quite well with recycling and they had been worried about being penalised while lower performing authorities got more funding. But there doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason as to why some have succeeded and others haven't.”
Cambridge recycles 22% of its waste, compared to the national average of 12% and it must increase its recycling rate by half by the end of 2003.
DEFRA spokesman Matt Conway said: “We want people to re-apply for the money that is coming out next year and that is why we have issued guidance to authorities who made unsuccessful bids for funding.”
Earlier this week, the LGA criticised the government's decision to allocate only 43.3 million of the 140 million fund in order to distribute the remainder next year (see letsrecycle.com story). Less than a third of the recycling schemes proposed by the 195 councils that made applications were successful.
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