But this claim flies in the face of an independent report from the Audit Commission this week, which said the majority of Welsh councils need “a substantial improvement in performance” if they are to meet the targets.
The assembly has set the objectives to recycle or compost 15% of household waste by March 2004 and 40% by 2010.
Commenting on a meeting with EU environment commissioner Margot Wallstrom, the Welsh environment minister said: “I stressed the importance of the high targets for recycling and composting municipal waste within the Wales waste strategy. I am pleased to have seen real progress towards these being made. Local authorities are working hard and I believe most are on course to achieve at least 15% recycling and composting by 2004.”
In contrast, the Audit Commission report found that just 15 of the 22 Welsh councils have plans that will enable them to meet the target and only 13 councils are currently recycling over 5%.
Difficult
Councillor Graham Court, deputy environment spokesperson for the Welsh Local Government Association, supported the views of Ms Essex, saying: “I have close contact with local authorities across Wales on waste management issues. Our latest information shows that five authorities have already exceeded the 15% recycling and composting target a year ahead of the Assembly’s target date.”
He explained: “All the indications are that at the most two or three authorities may be finding it difficult to achieve the target and together with the Assembly Government we will be seeing how they can be helped. I am confident that this, first, target will be achieved by most local authorities across Wales by 2003-04 as a stepping stone towards the later targets we will need to achieve to meet the requirements of the Landfill Directive.”
The Audit Commission report was not entirely negative, it also highlighted the novel strategies of some councils to improve their waste management and encourage public involvement. For example, local community councils in Powys have implemented a scheme where community groups can adopt and run recycling sites, and the council pays for the waste they recycle.
The report did warn that a lack of infrastructure and availability of appropriate staff has caused real problems for many of the lagging Welsh authorities. It said some councils claim there is a lack of “guidance to assist them in the planning and implementation of kerbside collection schemes”.
Clive Grace, director-general of the Audit Commission in Wales, said:
“A number of councils have some way to go if they are to meet the targets. Given the very low level of general performance there is a risk that the short term target of 15% by 2004 will not be achieved by all councils. Each authority must now continue to build on the recycling rates already achieved and ensure that a robust strategy is in place to support the achievement of these targets.”
The commission also found some councils with composting strategies “that do not lead to reduction of landfill and may lead to additional cost.”
Agency
Delegates at the Plaid Cymru spring conference in Llangollen have also heard that Wales has a poor record on waste. Dr Helen Phillips, director of Environment Agency Wales said that Wales lags behind other European countries in dealing with the problems of production and disposal of waste.
Dr Phillips warned: “New EU directives coming into force in the next few years will concentrate minds. The agency would like to see waste become the last option. Policy initiatives and other incentives encourage reduction in the amount of waste produced.
“We should then aim to reuse as much as we can. The next step is to recover the value of remaining waste by recycling, composting, landspreading of organic wastes and incineration with energy recovery,” she added.
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