Harlow’s Waste Challenge
Proposed changes to waste and
recycling collections
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Harlow has to do so much more to reduce, re-use and recycle
waste.
Protecting our environment is an important issue and the
pressure is on because landfill is running out and the cost of
sending rubbish to landfill sites will rise.
The challenge is on.
Harlow has improved its recycling levels over the last few years
and has performed well given the limitations of the current
collection system. The only way we can achieve higher recycling
rates and reduce waste is to significantly change the way our waste
is collected.
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Waste & Recycling Collection
Proposals
The final system is yet to be decided when the
contractors’ bids are returned, but the current preferred
option is:
A weekly kitchen waste collection for all
households and bookable weekly nappy and incontinence waste
collections.
For houses and other low rise properties dry
recycling collections one week and refuse collections the next
week.
Around 22,500 households will be supplied with
wheeled bins for refuse and dry recycling. Around 4,500 properties
that can't accommodate wheeled bins will be provided with black
bags for refuse and will use existing blue boxes and white bags for
recycling.
All properties will be supplied with special
small containers for weekly kitchen waste collections.
Flats will continue with the current
collection system from communal bins, along with weekly kitchen
waste collections.
“Assisted collections” will be available for those who have
genuine difficulty with the new system.
The existing clinical and incontinence wastes service that some
residents receive via the health service will continue.
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A series of public meetings have been held
with residents about proposed waste and recycling collections.
The meetings were held as Harlow Council
prepares to renew its waste and recycling collections contract in
June 2009. Around 200 people attended the discussions and there was
also a separate meeting held with Harlow Pensioners’ Action
Group.
Councillor Andrew Johnson, Leader of the
Council, said: “The meetings gave the public the opportunity to ask
questions and find out more about the significant challenges
authorities are facing over waste, and therefore why we are
proposing changes to the system.
“We will continue to keep local residents up
to date with progress and we will make announcements when we can.
There is also plenty of information on this website where
people can find out more about the proposals and read a list of
frequently asked questions.”
From autumn 2009 new weekly food waste
collections could be introduced with refuse and recycling picked up
on alternate weeks. There could also be a weekly bookable nappy and
incontinence waste collections. The majority of homes would be
provided with wheelie bins with approximately one in seven
properties staying with existing black bags and recycling
containers.
In the coming months the Council will be
evaluating bids from contractors. The final collection arrangements
will be announced after the Council sets it budget and Council Tax
levels in February next year.
Public Meetings on
Waste & Recycling Contract
The three meetings held
on 17 and 22 September and 17 October were attended by more than
180 people. Councillors and Officers from Harlow and Essex Councils
were on hand to answer questions about the proposals. A meeting has
also taken place with the Harlow Pensioners Action Group.
In the coming months the
Council will be evaluating bids as part of the contract process and
the final system and contractors will be announced after the
Council sets its budget in February next year.
Waste & Recycling Contract Committee
Report
To view a copy of the report agreed by the
Council’s Environment & Community Committee on 8 July please
follow this link: Committee
Report.
Follow the link for information on the
Essex Waste Strategy (pdf), which details the
county-wide plan for reducing waste and increasing reuse and
recycling.
Press releases
WASTE & RECYCLING CONTRACT 2009
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQs)
1) Is the
council stopping weekly collections?
2) Why
Alternate Weekly Collections (AWC)?
3) What about
the Health and Safety implications of Alternate Weekly
Collections (AWC) and Wheeled Bins?
4) Does this
mean smelly rubbish will be hanging around for 2
weeks?
5) Why Wheeled
Bins?
6) I don’t
like the appearance of wheeled bins – Harlow wasn’t designed for
wheeled bins.
7) I live in a
terrace house and my front garden is very small. I don’t want
wheelie bins lining the street?
8) I have four steps up
to my house. Will I have to drag the bins up and down
them?
9) I live in a square
where there are three front doors within feet of each other?
Where will the bins go?
10) I have very young
children. What can I do with disposable
nappies?
11) My mother lives
with us and she has incontinence bags. Will they still be
collected?
12) I am
disabled and have an assisted collection at the moment. Will
this service continue?
13) I live in
a block of flats. Will I have wheeled bins as
well?
14) Why are
flats still on weekly collections?
15) When will
the changes take place?
16) Will I
have a wheeled bin for green waste like other
towns?
17) Am I
getting a reduced service and will my Council Tax go
down?
18) Why are
you changing the contract?
19) Why
aren’t you consulting with the public over the
changes?
20) Why can’t
you extend the contract to allow more time for
consultation?
21) What
happens if we don’t do anything and carry on as
before?
22) How is
the Council going to keep the public informed?
23) When is
this all going to happen and how will I know what to
do?
24) How can I
keep a wheeled bin clean?
25) What will happen to the different wastes when
they are collected?
26) What happens
next?
WASTE & RECYCLING CONTRACT 2009 - ANSWERS
1) Is
the council stopping weekly collections?
No. We will continue to collect waste every
week from your property. We are looking to provide a new,
small, bin for kitchen waste, collected weekly as now.
Recycling will, as now, be collected every other week but we will
supply a large wheeled bin to reflect the larger amounts of waste
which are recycled. The main change will be that residual
waste will now be collected on the alternate week from a smaller
wheeled bin, or in plastic sacks for those properties that can’t
accommodate wheeled bins.
The details of the final scheme could be
different as we are asking the companies who want to bid for the
contract to suggest different ways of achieving our aims; they may
come up with different solutions, but if we were to accept a
different proposal it would still need to meet the Council’s
aspirations and ensure a high quality service to the public.
2)
Why Alternate Weekly Collections (AWC)?
The proposed system introduces a new weekly
collection of food waste and a new weekly bookable collection of
nappies and incontinence wastes. The wheeled bins give extra
capacity for recycling material and aim to reduce the amount of
ordinary rubbish being thrown away. If you recycle all that you
can, and get rid of kitchen waste through the separate collection
scheme then there shouldn’t be anything smelly in the recycling or
rubbish containers and they should be big enough to last a
fortnight. Fortnightly collections of rubbish encourage waste
minimisation and the Council is ensuring smelly wastes will still
be collected weekly. Home composting of vegetable matter
would reduce kitchen waste even further. Incontinence and clinical
waste collections that are usually made by the Health Authority
will continue. However, the new scheme will include a
bookable weekly collection of nappies and other incontinence wastes
for those who are concerned about it.
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3) What
about the Health and Safety implications of Alternate Weekly
Collections (AWC) and Wheeled Bins?
By sorting your waste into the right
containers, and washing empty food containers, you shouldn’t
experience odour or vermin problems even with fortnightly
collections of residual waste. Remember, your food waste will
be collected weekly.
There are manual handling issues for crews
with the current system of lifting sacks of waste. Under the
Manual Handing Operations Regulations 1992 there is a duty on
employers to, so far as is reasonably practicable, avoid hazardous
manual handling operations and reduce the risk of injury. As
part of meeting their duties employers are required to implement
the use of mechanical aides as a means of reducing manual handling
operations.
The introduction of wheeled bins mitigates
manual handling risks (for both the crew and the residents) as it
replaces a significant proportion of the high risk lifting and
carrying part of the work with a mechanical alternative.
Using wheeled bins avoids the need for staff to lift and carry
sacks to the truck and the wheeled bins are mechanically lifted
onto vehicle hoists, thereby avoiding the need for sacks to be
lifted into the truck.
For most residents, wheeled bins should
be easy to handle. The resident shouldn't need to lift heavy
sacks into the bin, as rubbish can be placed into the bin in
ordinary pedal bin liners directly from the kitchen. The bin
is manoeuvrable by tilting and wheeling it around. Even where
steps are negotiated, the bin can be "bumped" up and down them
without lifting it, (similar to a pushchair).
To put the weight of wheeled bins into
context, a large 240 litre bin (for recycling) weighs just 14 kilos
(31lb or 2stone 2lb) – the weight of a 2 year old child such as may
be in a ‘buggy’, or a week’s shopping in a supermarket trolley, and
therefore as easily managed. It is not anticipated that a
typical household would create a full load of dry recycling to be
more than double that weight.
The bin for dry ‘residual’ waste (120 litres)
weighs just 9.5 kilos (21lb or 1½ stone) – the weight of a one year
old. Likewise, although the volume of dry ‘residual waste’ is
unlikely to amount to a full bin load, even a full bin should not
weigh more than a total of 18 kilos, (40 lbs or 3 stone).
4)
Does this mean smelly rubbish will be hanging around for 2
weeks?
No - all properties,
including flat blocks, will have a weekly collection of kitchen
waste. There will also be a bookable weekly
collection of nappies and incontinence wastes.
There has been widespread publicity about the
risk of smells and pests from fortnightly residual waste
collections. This has been considered very carefully and at
length and there are a number of factors that reduce this
risk:-
a) The
majority of dwellings would have rigid containers to prevent vermin
reaching the waste.
b) By
sorting your waste into the right containers, and washing empty
food containers, such as trays and cans, you shouldn’t experience
odour or vermin problems even with fortnightly collections of
residual waste. Remember, your food waste will be collected
weekly. There will also be a bookable weekly collection of nappies
and incontinence wastes. To make it easy, this would only have to
be booked once, not every week.
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c) The
kitchen waste would be stored in external rigid containers that are
about the size of a pedal bin with handles that pull down to
secure the lid.
d) Other
smelly items such as meat trays and cans should be washed
before
being deposited in the container. Some items can be washed
in a dishwasher.
e) For those
residents with sacks for refuse that will be collected every
fortnight, the above actions should minimise smells and risk of
vermin.
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f)
It is
proposed that refuse sacks will be provided for those residents who
can’t have wheeled bins and sack strength will be specified so that
it is of a suitably robust quality.
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5) Why Wheeled
Bins?
It is
widely recognised that the higher performing councils nationally
use wheeled bins. Of the top 10 recycling councils in 2006/7, those
achieving over 25% dry recycling were on wheeled bin systems.
The use of wheeled bins was considered as one of the container
types for the following reasons:-
a) Wheeled
bins will greatly reduce littering problems caused during
collection.
b) A wheeled
bin for residual waste would contain the waste effectively and
securely and prevent spillage of contents caused by animals and
vermin.
c) There are
already some official wheeled bin areas across the Town, and there
is inequity as some residents want wheeled bins in other areas who
can’t have them as the contract is for a mainly sack service.
This is problematic as some residents have purchased their own
wheeled bins and present these for collection.
d) A large
bin for recyclable material, combined with a smaller residual
(non-recyclable material) waste bin encourages waste
minimisation.
e) Less
refuse sacks would be sent to landfill each week.
f)
Cleaner and easier to handle for you and the collection crew
g) Less
risk of injury to the collection crew i.e. less manual lifting and
no sharp objects poking out from sacks
h) Encourages recycling
6) I
don’t like the appearance of wheeled bins – Harlow wasn’t designed
for wheeled bins.
This has been a difficult decision for the
Council as there are a number of factors that are driving the need
to change the way we collect waste. The technical
considerations are complex and it has taken many months of careful
consideration to reach the conclusion on the future collection
system that should go out to Tender. After considering a
range of options, with a multitude of permutations, it was
concluded to be the most advantageous solution when considering
cost and performance. Although aesthetic considerations are
important, the Council has a responsibility to plan waste
collections that consider wider implications. The Council
will consider “Variant Bids” that are returned by contractors that
may be quite different from this solution, provided they meet the
Council’s aspirations, including:
- High recycling
- Waste minimisation
- Weekly kitchen waste collections
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7)
I live in a terrace
house and my front garden is very small. I don’t want wheelie
bins lining the street?
We recognise that wheeled bins are not suited
for every house and from our survey we estimate around one low rise
property in seven will not be able to cope with them. In
these cases, plastic sacks will be provided for the residual waste,
(rubbish that you can’t recycle). Kitchen waste will be in a
different container, and recycling will still be collected from the
existing boxes and bags for these properties. It won’t be
possible to identify which properties will be affected until the
final bidder has been selected and done their own survey.
8) I
have four steps up to my house. Will I have to drag the bins
up and down them?
A survey has been made of properties where
wheeled bins may not be appropriate but it will be for the bidder
to recommend how waste from these properties will be
collected. We estimate that up to around one in seven low
rise properties, will be unsuitable for bins. Some properties
that have steps will be considered suitable for wheeled bins but
the suitability would be reviewed by the contractor. The
resident would be expected to “bump” the wheeled bin down a limited
number of steps, (as happens elsewhere), but assisted collections
will continue to be provided to residents who have genuine
difficulty moving any waste containers.
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9) I live in a
square where there are three front doors within feet of each
other? Where will the bins go?
A survey has been made of properties where wheeled bins may not
be appropriate but it will be for the bidder to recommend how waste
from these properties will be collected. We estimate that
around one in seven low rise properties, (subject to a further
survey by the successful bidder), will be unsuitable for bins where
there isn’t space for them in the front of the property.
10) I have very
young children. What can I do with disposable
nappies?
There will be a bookable weekly collection service for
disposable nappies. We do recommend the use of cotton nappies
with liners which are a lot more environmentally friendly..
At the moment, Harlow is amongst the first authorities on offering
this service.
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11) My mother lives with us
and she has incontinence bags. Will they still be
collected?
Yes, the bookable collection service provided
through the NHS for clinical waste will not be affected and will
remain.
12) I am disabled
and have an assisted collection at the moment. Will this
service continue?
Yes it will. There will be an “Assisted”
service for anyone who has genuine difficulty moving any waste
containers. Also, for older residents living in Sheltered
Housing Complexes the current communal bin system will remain in
most cases. The Assisted Collection system will apply whatever
system we select. It means that for residents who have genuine
difficulty moving containers, operatives will collect the
containers from an agreed point, usually at the front of the
property but, for example, it would avoid the resident having to
wheel a bin to the boundary.
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13) I live in a block of
flats. Will I have wheeled bins as well?
Waste collection from high rise flats will
remain the same, using the existing large bins.but there will be
additional weekly collections of kitchen waste.
14) Why are flats still on
weekly collections?
This is mainly because rubbish storage is more
difficult to control in communal areas of flats, and to help keep
the communal areas clean.
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15) When will the
changes take place?
The new contract will begin at the end of June
2009 but we expect any new system to be introduced starting in
Autumn 2009 in stages so that we can monitor the changes.
16) Will I have a
wheeled bin for green waste like other towns?
The option of collecting green waste through a
bookable service will continue for those who cannot compost or take
it to the recycling centre. No, there will not be an extra
bin.
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17) Am I getting a
reduced service and will my Council Tax go down?
You will receive a better service with new
bins. The cost of collecting waste across the country, not
just Harlow is going to go up. The current standard rate of
landfill tax is £24 per tonne for active wastes. This will
double to £48 per tonne in 2010/11. In addition, if targets
aren’t met for reducing the amount of biodegradable waste tipped,
authorities will be fined. And, the cost of oil to make the
bins and for fuel is going up fast. Regretably, the cost of
the new contract will be higher than the present one.
18) Why are you
changing the contract?
We are changing the contract for a number of
reasons. We are working with all the other councils in Essex
on improving ways of dealing with waste. Tipping waste away
in landfill is no longer the answer – we are running out of holes
for landfill. We need to recycle more on sustainability
grounds and to reduce the amount of waste we tip away. The
rate of landfill tax for active wastes(that give off emissions)
will double to £48 per tonne in 2010/11. In addition, if
targets aren’t met for reducing the amount of biodegradable waste
sent to landfill, councils will be fined. Not changing is not
an option. To protect the environment everyone needs to do their
bit – compost green waste, drive less, use fewer plastic shopping
bags, throw away less food, and so on.
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19) Why aren’t you
consulting with the public over the changes?
This has been a difficult decision for the
Council as there are a number of factors that are driving the need
to change the way we collect waste. The technical
considerations are complex. It has taken many months of careful
consideration to reach the conclusion on the future collection
system that should go out to Tender. After considering a
range of options, with a multitude of permutations, this was
concluded to be the most advantageous solution when considering
cost and performance. Now that the council has decided on which
basis to collect waste, we can begin a major information and
feedback process to explain the changes, why they are necessary and
how they will affect you. Obviously your views are very
welcome, in particular with regard to individual properties.
And we will make it easy for you to contact us, by phone, email,
website, and post.
20) Why can’t you
extend the contract to allow more time for
consultation?
Harlow Council only collects your
rubbish. It is disposed of by Essex County Council for all of
the Districts in Essex. Because of the rising costs of waste
disposal, Essex is looking at how it can do it better, and be more
environmentally friendly. We have to work with all the other
councils, at the same time, to fit in with the new methods of
disposal. In addition, the contract with Veolia, who collect
your rubbish at the moment, has been extended already to coincide
with the new collection arrangements, and legally we are unable to
extend the contract any further.
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21) What happens if we
don’t do anything and carry on as before?
If we don’t change our method of collecting
waste, Harlow isn’t going to improve significantly in recycling and
will be sending too much waste to landfill. With the present
pricing proposals, not changing will become totally
unaffordable. Also we wouldn’t divert as much biodegradable
waste from landfill as we could. (Biodegradable waste such as
kitchen waste gives off potent gases when landfilled and so it is
important we reduce the amount that is landfilled). Harlow would
also fall way behind authorities up and down the country who are
forging ahead with new systems. We as a council have a duty to help
and enable you to do your bit to protect the environment by dealing
with your waste effectively.
22) How is the
Council going to keep the public informed?
There will be much more publicity and
promotion of the new scheme before it is implemented so that the
public are made aware of any changes. This will be in a
variety of ways so that we can reach all parts of the community and
to help residents understand any changes. For example, there will
be information in the press and on the website, roadshows, leaflets
and opportunities for the public to ask questions.
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23) When is this all
going to happen and how will I know what to do?
The new contract is due to start in July 2009,
but changes to the collection system are unlikely to start before
September 2009. You will be notified in advance and the new
service will be explained clearly.
24) How can I keep
a wheeled bin clean?
There shouldn’t be any smelly, rotting
waste in your wheeled bin under the new system as your kitchen
waste will be collected separately. This should help
significantly in keeping a wheeled bin clean. Rubbish that
isn’t recyclable could be taken from the kitchen in liners such as
those you currently use to line your kitchen pedal bin, and put
into the wheeled bin within those liners or bags. There
shouldn’t be a need to line the wheeled bins with liners. The
recycling wheeled bin is for dry recycling such as paper, cans,
glass and plastics and so shouldn’t become dirty. You can use
biodegradable bags from the supermarket, or newspaper, to line your
kitchen waste caddy, and a piece of newspaper in the bottom of the
external kitchen caddy will help to keep it clean.
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25) What will
happen to the different wastes when they are
collected?
Essex County Council are the disposal
authority for wastes, and are planning longer term solutions for
treatment of wastes. This will include facilities to sort and treat
residual waste and recyclable materials, to process biodegradable
waste and to generate energy.
26) What happens
next?
The Council will issue Invitations to Tender to shortlisted
contractors in August and the submitted bids will be evaluated from
September when they are due to be returned. These FAQs will be
updated as details emerge, and information will be made available
through the press and the website.
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