Agenda item

D Austin introduced the report to members and ran through a few key points. The waste service contract in Dacorum expires in October 2017 and so it is time to start thinking about the new contract. Discussions have taken place with neighbouring authorities to work together and go out to tender with Watford, Welwyn Hatfield and Three Rivers. Dacorum has a very good reputation for the quality of recyclables and the council will maintain control of that under the new consortium contract. There is a debate in the industry particularly in local authorities over whether it is better to play the market with short term deals or to go for longer term agreements which allows for long term investment and stability in the waste service.

Councillor Ashbourn said that the consortium could be a good approach but it is important to be careful if a clearly identifiable benefit or balance can be established against the cost. Also, the cost of exit and if there will be an exit policy. Councillor Ashbourn said he understood the arguments but hoped there would a degree of caution.

D Austin said he understood the concerns and there was historically a Hertfordshire Waste Partnership consortium for newspapers and other recyclable materials. Some districts on their own were receiving £75-100 a tonne whereas in the consortium we were receiving well over £100 a tonne. There are standard clauses in the contract for an exit.

Councillor S Hearn asked D Austin if he was confident that the quality of the service will be maintained and not affected by the influence of other local authorities.

D Austin said that the new contract would not directly impact on residents. It is important to increase public participation and to not get complacent. As a department, we are always looking to improve the service, for example, No Food Waste stickers were put on residents black bins and in the first week, there was a huge increase in food waste collected. Dacorum have a waste transfer system whereby inspections can be made before it is sent off to the reprocessor. If there are issues with contamination on a particular round then targeted work can be done to improve the quality of the waste. There is nothing to suggest this would change under the new contract.

Councillor E Collins said she was concerned by a seven year long contract; it is a long time to commit when there are rapid changes in the population.

D Austin said there are more single households which changes the composition of the waste. Also, there are changes in materials which have an effect. For example, glass is getting thinner which then decreases the amount of tonnage collected. Newspapers are also in decline as more people use online resources. There is a price index which reflects price changes in materials and Dacorum will receive a financial benefit in this new contract if the market picks up. There is not a lot of difference if Dacorum go it alone or join with the waste consortium but a longer contract allows for greater investment in reprocessor technologies.

Councillor E Collins asked D Austin to clarify what investment would be made.

D Austin said facilities would be improved. There is research into lasers that are able to separate different plastics and coloured glass. This contract will be an incentive to reprocessors.

Councillor Ransley asked if there would be any extra cost or impact on staffing levels.

D Austin said there would be no effect on staff. Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council would be the lead authority for the contract and each authority would pay them an annual subscription to oversee the project.

Councillor Hicks asked if there are penalties for any material that is not recyclable.

D Austin said that non-recyclable materials must be well in excess before a load is rejected. There is a targeted approach and press campaigns to promote recycling.

Councillor Anderson asked if the food sticker results would be on the next quarterly report.

D Austin said yes they would be. The stickers were distributed at the end of February and so the impact was mostly felt in March where there was a 50% increase in food waste collected in the first week.

Councillor Fisher asked if there will be attempts in the future to include other local authorities into the consortium.

D Austin said that there were ten districts within Hertfordshire and there were long discussions about who was going to be involved in the contract. Geographically, this proposed consortium works well and other local authorities are not committed. The authorities in this partnership have earlier contract renewal dates and it is vital to move now. It could lead the way for joint collections on boundaries and could set a foundation for other projects.

Councillor C Wyatt-Lowe was also concerned with the contract length. She said she would be more comfortable with perhaps a four year contract with the option to extend. Councillor C Wyatt-Lowe said so much could change and could potentially be financially worse off. She said she was concerned that the contract may lead to complacency within other authorities.

Councillor C Wyatt-Lowe said she was also concerned regarding the quality of recyclables which Dacorum has a good reputation for. Within this group contract, will the quality be monitored so that Dacorum do not get dragged down?

D Austin explained that the market was in a state of oversupply and contracts are being cherry picked for waste quality. Some local authorities are hauling their loads considerable distances to get to a waste depot. The local authorities in this contract share a commitment to material quality and Three Rivers also have an outstanding reputation for waste quality. Furthermore, loads are sampled individually.

Councillor Marshall thanked the committee for their comments and would present them at Cabinet when this report goes before the committee.

Outcome

The Strategic Planning and Environment Overview and Scrutiny Committee noted the report.