Agenda item

Report of the Executive Director – Environment, Highways and Community Services.

The Cabinet Member with the Local Services Portfolio introduced the report (previously circulated) of the Executive Director – Environment, Highways and Community Services outlining the requirements of the Environment Act 2021 and providing details on options for improved dry recycling as part of the development of a new statutory weekly food waste collection service.

Reference was made to the main requirements of the Environment Act 2021 in relation to waste management, which included the requirement to introduce a weekly food waste collection service from March 2026; a new simpler recycling policy aimed at making recycling easier by making collections consistent for all households, businesses and relevant non-domestic premises; an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme which placed the responsibility on packing producers to cover the full net cost of dealing with the packaging that they placed on the market; and the introduction of a Deposit Return Scheme, from October 2027, where individuals would receive a refund on the deposit paid when they returned polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles, steel and aluminium cans from 150ml to 3L in size.

The submitted report stated that the provision of a food waste collection service for residents would have implications for the Borough’s local waste management; outlined the existing household waste collection, treatment and disposal services together with the associated costs; the annual tonnage from each of the waste streams; the results from the performance and benchmarking exercise that had been undertaken; and the implications of the Act on existing waste management services.  An analysis of residual waste collected within Darlington had been undertaken which had identified that 34 per cent of the waste collected was food waste; 3,775 tonnes of recyclable material was currently disposed of in the residual waste stream; and that 9.7 per cent of residual waste was found to be garden vegetation, which could have been recycled through the garden waste collection service.

Particular reference was made to the approach taken to develop options for a new food waste collection service; the major elements of the project for the Council to meet the statutory deadline; proposals for the collection of food waste within residential properties; options for food waste collection from the kerbside; option analysis and financial implications for each option; the pros and cons of each option; how the collected material would be treated; the key risks, issues and considerations; and the financial impact on the Medium Term Financial Plan of both the implementation and future years.

Reference was made at the meeting to the involvement of Scrutiny in the process; the delays; the importance of the waste collection service to the public; the omission of glass from the Deposit Return Scheme; the burden on manufacturers to deal with the net cost of dealing with the packaging they produced; and to the flexibility given by progressing Option 4, which was the preferred option.

RESOLVED – (a)  That the arrangements for waste collection, identified as Option 4 in the submitted report, be progressed.

(b)  That each household be issued with a 5-7L internal caddie and external 23L bin for food waste.

(c)  That for the first year of the scheme each household be issued with 52 compostable liners at a cost of approximately £35,000.

(d)  That the capital funding of £1,182,778 be released to enable the scheme to progress.

REASONS – (a)Option 4 provides the maximum flexibility to develop recycling performance once food waste recycling has been introduced and embedded.

(b)  To enable the project to progress and procurement processes to commence for vehicle, caddies, bins and treatment of food waste.

(c)  To enable the Council to undertake best endeavours to ensure food waste collections are in place by April 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter.

(d)  To enable the funding to be utilised on scheme costs.