Consistency to cost £6 million for 1% recycling rise, GMCA says

GMCA held a meeting to assess the potential implications of the government’s Resources and Waste Strategy (RWS) on 1 February.

First published in December 2018, the RWS outlines the government’s plans for a deposit return scheme, extended producer responsibility, and consistent collections.

Potential cost

In preparation for two rounds of consultations on the proposals in 2021, the GMCA commissioned an implication assessment to understand the potential cost and impact on service delivery of the government’s preferred model of waste collection.

It also discussed potential adjustments to fit with Greater Manchester’s particular circumstances.

The government’s preferred approach is to segregate and collect separately seven materials for recycling.

However, a report written by Cllr Allison Gwynne, chair of the GMCA’s waste and recycling
committee, argues that providing seven separate collection container at each home will be a challenge nationally, and more so in urban areas with flats.

The GMCA would need to purchase additional collection vehicles with boxes for material separation implemented within the vehicle, the report says.

Additional crews, depots and maintenance areas would also be required to accommodate the expanded fleets.

Funds

The report then stated that collection costs would increase, reflecting the higher number of vehicles.

To an extent, this would be balanced by a lower disposal cost due to lower cost of treating separate food and garden waste, the report says, which are suggested by the Defra to be collected together under the new model.

Even then, the council would be looking at an annual increase of £6.7 million, with the recycling rates only rising by 1.1%. This would increase the current budget to £104 million.

It has been suggested in Defra’s consultations that new burdens funding will be available, but “we are yet to see any further detail or draft legislation enshrining these commitments”, the report reads.

However, the government has indicated constraints that may result in deviation, which include the impact of housing stock, availability of collection containers as well as storage.

Local authorities would need to demonstrate that their specific financial costs caused by local circumstances would make it significantly more expensive to transition into the suggested collection model, the GMCA said.

Last year, in January 2021, the GMCA stressed that the proposals set out in the strategy will require “significant investment” (see letsrecycle.com story).

Current system

The report also challenged the government’s planned kerbside sort collections, making a case for retention of its current four bin system.

Greater Manchester’s collection system would be highly driven by its “very high proportion of high-density street level properties where up to seven containers would impinge on daily life”.

Currently, the GMCA collects mixed food and garden waste, mixed paper, card and cartons, plastic bottles, glass and metal cans, and non-recyclable waste in separate streams.

The local authorities argued that this system is “consistent and proven to work”, and it keeps key materials apart and produces generally good quality material.

Importantly, there is “no significant environmental benefit, based on CO₂-equivalent emissions, of switching to kerbside collection system”, the report concluded.

Responses to these consultations and further information on the implementation of the RWS are expected to be released in spring 2022.