[Local authorities] will continue to deliver provided they are adequately supported in terms of adequate funding and producer responsibility
Cllr Aled Roberts, WLGA
Speaking following the launch of a consultation on a revised Welsh waste strategy yesterday (see letsrecycle.com story), the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) said that local government had repeatedly argued that there needed to be more uniformity with regards to targets because they had traditionally fallen on councils alone.
The targets would require that 70% of all waste from households, the commercial sector and construction is recycled or composted by 2025, in addition to 90% of non-hazardous construction waste by 2020 – although a spokesman for the WAG said it was likely that only the council targets would be statutory.
Councillor Aled Roberts, WLGA environment spokesperson, explained that local government had worked very hard with the Welsh Assembly on the development of the strategy.
He said: “We particularly welcome the 70% target set today for other sectors. For a long time local government has argued that there needs to be a level playing field when it comes to waste management.”
Cllr Roberts added that while the 70% target for councils was “challenging”, he believed it would “boldly place Wales at the forefront of environmental protection and sustainability.”
He added: “Local authorities take their environmental responsibilities very seriously. Indeed, councils are already more than exceeding their waste targets set by the Welsh Assembly Government and will continue to deliver provided they are adequately supported in terms of adequate funding and producer responsibility.”
CIWM
Praise for the increased focus on commercial and industrial waste also came from the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management, which also complimented the Welsh Assembly Government's “strong leadership”.
However, chief executive Steve Lee said that its deliverability and success would depend on policies yet to be formulated.
He said: “There is still a lot of detail left to come and we look forward to seeing the policy measures that will be more clearly outlined in the proposed sector plans.
“We would also welcome a clearer picture of how delivery of this ambitious strategy will be funded, particularly given the emphasis on segregation at source for both municipal and commercial waste, which could be a challenge for local authorities at a time when budgets are constrained,” he added.
FoE
A further note of reservation about the overall strategy was sounded by Friends of the Earth, which, despite welcoming the 70% recycling targets, was critical of the Welsh Assembly's proposals to class ash produced from incinerators as recycling and allow up to 30% of municipal waste to be treated to produce energy.
FoE Cymru campaigner Haf Elgar said: “We're deeply concerned about the Welsh Assembly Government's support for incineration, and the proposals for large-scale regional incineration in Wales. Incineration is not climate-friendly, and it's well established that building incinerators can negatively impact recycling rates.”
Source-separation
Responses to the draft strategy also came from CYLCH – the Wales Community Recycling Network – and the Campaign for Real Recycling (CRR), which advocates source-separated collections on behalf of organisations including reprocessors.
Both bodies praised proposed measures to encourage the source-separation of recyclable materials in a bid to improve their quality.
Mal Willians, chief executive of Cylch, said: “The strategy must be congratulated on giving such focus on the final destination of our materials and ensuring they are recycled responsibly.”
Phil Hurst, of the CRR, added: “The UK reprocessing industries will be watching Wales closely with a view to build on current contracts and expand buying activities as more quality materials become available.”
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