Agenda item

[Chris Huddart,Head of Commercial Services / Christine Cole (Waste performance and Minimisation Officer), to present report on waste collection and disposal arrangements within Wolverhampton and discuss proposals for communicating to citizens the correct use of the waste collection bins.]

Chris Huddart, Head of Service and Christine Cole, Service Manager Waste Management and Minimisation, provided a report and presentation to the Panel detailing the objectives, service configuration, legislative requirements, waste hierarchy, communications and feedback.

In response to questions relating to the problem of contaminated waste the Head of Service advised that between 8 and 10% of recycle waste is contaminated.  He outlined the arrangements for the collection crews to record on in cab devices bins that have not been emptied because of contamination. Ha advised that If contaminated waste is identified the bin will be left at the roadside with a note stating why it has not been emptied. Collection rounds that have high levels of bins that are not collected are visited by an outreach team working to visit households and advise them on the correct use of the bins.

In response to further questions he advised that once a full load is returned to the transport station in Crown Street, some low level contamination can be sorted by tipping the load onto the floor in the loading bay and litter picking takes place by operatives, taking out the obvious contamination.  The load can then be reloaded onto larger transport to make its way to the recycling plant. Once the load reaches the plant further decontamination processes are used to pull out contaminated waste.   

Cllr John Rowley gave credit to Wolverhampton Council for initiating recycling 18 years faster than Birmingham and other neighbouring authorities but questioned the value of the food waste process. The Head of Service advised that the food waste service is currently under review with a team going to Bury Council to see its practice of residual and food waste collection recently introduced. He informed the Panel that the current fleet used for the collection of residual waste and food waste is scheduled to be replaced in 15-18 months’ time; consequently a decision on the future collection arrangements for households will need to be confirmed before a new fleet is procured.

The Service Manage advised that the food waste collections are compulsory in Scotland and Wales and that there may be further legislative change to require all Councils to collect food waste, the detail is not yet known.

Cllr Phil Bateman and other Councillors praised the level of service from Amey and response time to queries. Cllr Phil Bateman questioned how many householders were actually participating in the food waste collections and the value of continuing with a service that is currently non-essential. Cllr Haynes voiced some concern that there needs to be certainty that the requirement to collect food waste is not going to become compulsory.

The Head of Service agreed to bring further information back to the Panel in September relating to the food waste process.

The Head of Service acknowledged Cllr John Rowleys concerns about potentially losing the green waste collections, which currently operate for six months of the year and noted the suggestions of Panel to consider other forms of waste collections such as kerbside collections for batteries and electrical waste.

The Panel focused on the leaflets shared as part of the presentation and made the following comments:

·                     The leaflet could show more  recycling matter, it is not showing the full story and could encourage residents to increase resourcefulness

·                     The leaflets should be pasted to the bin as a visual reminder when emptying waste

·                     Needs clarity on disposal of cat litter in the leaflet

·                     Assisted collections for people who cannot manage the bins should be highlighted

The Chair welcomed the opportunity to comment on the draft literature and thanked witnesses for their attendance.

Resolved

1.            That the comments of the Vibrant and Sustainable City Scrutiny Panel on the draft literature are referred to the Head of Waste Management and Minimisation to consider for inclusion in the leaflet

2.            That Panel note the current collection arrangements for waste and recycling and the cost disposing household waste generated within the City

3.            That a report be included on the work programme for the Panel at its next meeting relating to food waste process