Among those to receive awards were Hull city council, which was recognised for its work in changing its collection service in September 2008 and increasing recycling rates, while a collection crew from East Northamptonshire council was awarded for its efforts on its round and in working in the local community.
Recycling officer Tim Read from Castle Point borough council was also the recipient of the coveted Local Authority Recycling Champion Award in recognition for his work helping the local authority achieve a 40% recycling rate in 2009/10 and achieving a 95% customer satisfaction rating.
The gala event was hosted by BBC Ten O'Clock News broadcaster Huw Edwards and featured a keynote speech from Jane Stephenson MBE, who has been involved in the waste and recycling sector for 25 years and is currently chief executive of Bristol-based consultancy Resource Futures.
In her address, Ms Stephenson called for more focus on waste prevention and drew attention to the frontline work of community initiatives and collection crews. She said: “They are absolutely critical to the success of any recycling programme or initiative; they are there face-to-face with residents and are important in delivering any communication campaign.”
Awards
He said: “We hope to create some recycling headlines and perhaps compensate for the disappointingly low level of discussion about the environment and environmental issues during the Election campaign, we will certainly be providing something different to talk about and to celebrate.”
In his role as host, Huw Edwards said the Awards were an opportunity to report on the “positive stories” from waste and recycling, commenting: “A lot of coverage can be negative and not about what we are actually doing with recycling but about the problems with recycling or the particular issues with it.
“That is the kind of coverage people have been getting instead of praise for trying to make a real effort and to make a difference.”
The Winners
The winners are as follows:
High Street Recycling Champion – Sponsored by Severnside Recycling
The partnership was praised for the development of 18 recycling units to be placed across the WestQuay Shopping Centre in Southampton and in the parking area. Since the installation, 17.4 tonnes of mixed recyclables have been collected at the site.
Runners-up: Pets at Home; Willow Place and Corby Town Centre – Land Securities
Commercial Recycling Champion – Sponsored Valpak
Shirley Kidd was honoured for her work as the public face of recycling for a BP location used by 1,500 employees, 24-hoursa day and helping develop a greater awareness about the environmental impacts of operational activities.
Runners-up: Daniel O'Connor, Newcastle University; Connor Dalton, Martin Churley and Rebecca Lascelles, Wolseley UK
Waste Management Initiative in the Commercial and Public Sector – Sponsored by Shanks Waste Management
Swedish equipment firm Envac and property developer Quintain worked together to install underground vacuum waste collection chutes at the Wembley City housing development in North London, which became operational in December 2008.
Runners-up: HMP Styal – Gardens and Recycle Team; Manchester Airport
Innovation in Design of a Waste Management Facility – Sponsored by Environmental Services Association
The judges commended Vertal's food waste processing plant at Mitcham in South London, which, following a series of redesigns and improvements, is used to turn animal by-product category three food waste into a high nutrient fertiliser.
Runners-up: Hollingdean Materials Facility – Veolia Environmental Services; Wembley Waste Management Facility – Quintain Estates and Development PLC & Envac UK Ltd
Collection Crew of the Year – Sponsored by SITA UK
Brothers Simon and Michael Wallace and Richard Savage were praised for falling within their Level 1 target for missed collections and keeping a clean sheet in avoiding accidents. The three-man crew also received an ovation for their sponsored bike ride to raise money for a young boy on their round who has a rare form of cancer.
Runners-up: Hackney Crew 2 – May Gurney; Southwark Refuse 108 – Veolia Environmental Services
Best Community Recycling Initiative – Sponsored by SCA Recycling
The Skelmersdale-based EXSEL was recognised for its work in tackling issues of social and economic exclusion through furniture reuse and recycling, with the scheme having diverted 200,000 kgs of waste from landfill since it became operational in October 2007.
Runners-up: Bulky Bob's, Liverpool; FareShare, West Yorkshire
Civic Amenity Site of the Year – Sponsored by Repic
The South Wales authority received the Award for helping divert 82.57% of material it receives at the site away from landfill and introducing a dedicated facility to recycle waste mattresses. The site also attracts around 800 members of the public each week.
Runners-up: Aston Clinton Household Waste and Recycling Centre – Buckinghamshire county council; Ormeau Recycling Centre – Belfast city council
The Best Local Authority Recycling Initiative – Sponsored by Palm Recycling
The local authority was recognised for the impact of transforming its waste and recycling collection service in September 2008, which has seen the council achieve a 46% recycling rate in February 2010 ahead of its 50% target for 2010/11.
Runners-up: Cherwell district council; South West Waste & Recycling Forum
Local Authority Recycling Champion – Sponsored by UPM
As the only recycling officer in the Essex local authority, Tim Read has helped introduce new collection schemes, such as the Pink Sack recycling scheme which has helped the council record in 40% recycling rate for 2009/10 and achieve a 95% customer satisfaction rate for recycling services.
Runners-up: Habiba Ahmed, London borough of Redbridge; Sarah Dickinson, London borough of Haringey
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