Agenda item

C Thorpe introduced the report to members and ran through the highlights and key achievements.

• Environmental awareness has had a very busy quarter with new initiatives. The Love Parks campaign was more successful than expected.
• The Community Champion awards were held at The Marchmont Arms and awards were given to individuals and local groups.
• The department’s bid for help tackling fly tipping was successful and information leaflets will be distributed raising key messages.
• A lead gardener for the Water Gardens is now in post and the Tree and Woodlands Officer post has been filled.
• Members asked for analysis on reasons for sickness day and the report shows the majority of them are gastrointestinal which is to be expected as staff work in crews of 3-7 and any illness will spread quickly. Musculoskeletal issues are second on the list. Incidences of mental health absence have increased but these mean staff are often off for a longer period of time.
• Number of accidents in this quarter are included in the report, there were 19 vehicle accidents but these were mostly knocking off wing mirrors which is to be expected when crews are visiting every road in the borough.
• Regarding the performance indicators, the department is over target on collections which is impressive as they collect 1.2 million bins in each quarter.

Councillor C Wyatt-Lowe complimented C Thorpe and his team on the Water Gardens. She was pleased to see the smaller islands had been cleared of rubbish but the geese seem to have made a comeback and are pecking holes in the grass. Secondly, the new Swallowdale estate does not seem to have any general litter bins or dog waste bins installed and she asked if they were due to be.

C Thorpe said the dog waste bin contract did not fall under his remit. He was unsure about the situation regarding litter bins and said he would come back to Councillor C Wyatt-Lowe with an answer after the meeting. The geese have had an impact on the maintenance of the gardens. The team are working with others to come up with some solutions. One that has been suggested is to not cut the grass on the edge of the banks so it is difficult for them to get out the water.

Councillor Birnie asked what was the difference between litter and detritus.

C Thorpe said litter was rubbish dropped like crisp packets and detritus was dirt, earth and weeds.

Councillor Birnie said the department had been removing dog waste bins in his ward to see if it was cost effective. He asked if any conclusions could be drawn yet.

C Thorpe said there will be a report to this committee in January about dog waste bins. If dog waste bins are not able to be repaired then they are removed if there is a general litter bin nearby. There haven’t been any complaints as yet.

Councillor Birnie asked if any publicity had been promoted to tell residents that dog waste could go in general litter bins.

C Thorpe said no but he was in contact with colleagues at the Hertfordshire Waste Partnership to see how they have promoted it. Some councils have placed stickers on bins.

Councillor Riddick asked if there was a contribution from the organisers of the Tour of Britain to cover the clean up costs.

C Thorpe said the Clean, Safe and Green team have a budget to clean the borough 365 days a year and this does cover any events in the borough.

Councillor Timmis raised several points. Firstly, she referred back to the dog waste bins. She said she thought putting dog waste into general bins was unhygienic. Secondly, she asked if the sickness rate was comparable to other departments. Thirdly, she asked why the commercial waste round so not offer a recycling service.

C Thorpe replied to these points. Firstly, he said that a draft report would be coming to this committee in January but he had been speaking to other authorities to see what they did about dog waste bins. Secondly, the sickness record in Clean, Safe and Green is sometimes better than those in office departments. Staff do not have the flexibility to work from home and C Thorpe said he was very proud of the sickness record. Thirdly, in relation to the commercial waste collection, he said that the council do offer a cardboard and paper recycling service but recycling materials do not have any value.

Councillor Birnie asked if glass was worthless.

C Thorpe said that the department used to receive £35 a tonne for glass but now they pay £15 a tonne to dispose of it.

Councillor Anderson said the committee had previously discussed the drop off in business but questioned the reasons why a recycling service couldn’t be offered.

C Thorpe said other waste contractors do not see collecting recyclables as useful.

Councillor Anderson hoped that the council would not miss out on an opportunity to generate income. He then referred to a recent decision for a contract to maintain the trees in the borough, he asked if this was to replace the in house service or as an addition.

C Thorpe said it was an addition to the in house team. There have been some vacancies in the team which have not been filled and this is an opportunity to look at a restructure of the team.

Councillor Timmis referred back to the commercial waste collections. She said the decision should not solely rest on costs but it is also an environmental issue and the council should be encouraging recycling.

C Thorpe agreed and said every decision was made in relation to its economic and environmental viability.

Councillor Ransley said that a few trees were blown over in the storm in her ward and although they were removed from the road, they have just been left on the side of the road and over streams. Residents are concerned that the trees could block the stream and damage the land underneath.

C Thorpe asked Councillor Ransley to send him the locations and he would look into this.

Councillor Birnie asked if the vacancies in the tree department affected the tree expert that advised members on planning applications at the Development Management Committee.

C Thorpe said the vacancy was on the operational side.

Councillor Marshall referred to the problem with the geese in the Water Gardens. Prior to the hand over to Clean, Safe and Green, the Strategic Planning department were looking after the gardens. Lots of work has been done to try and resolve the issue but it is an on going battle and might take some trial and error.

Outcome

That the Strategic Planning and Environment Overview and Scrutiny Committee approve the report.