Issue - meetings

Cabinet Member: Environment

Forward Plan Ref: 2016/067

Contact: Andrew Pau, Strategic Manager for Waste & Transport Tel: 07768462499

Report by Acting Director for Environment & Economy (CA8).

The information contained in the annexes is exempt in that it falls within the following prescribed category:

3.         Information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information);

and since it is considered that, in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information, in that disclosure would distort the proper process of open competition and would prejudice the position of the authority in the process of the transaction and the Council’s standing generally in relation to such transactions in future, to the detriment of the Council’s ability properly to discharge its fiduciary and other duties as a public authority.

Oxfordshire currently operates seven Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs).  The sites accept approximately 49,000 tonnes of household residual and recyclable material each year with an average recycling rate of around 60%.

On 15 December 2015 Cabinet approved a strategy for the future provision of HWRC services. A programme is in place to implement the strategy. One of the projects is to procure a new HWRC management contract to secure the continued HWRC service after the existing contract expires on 30 September 2017. In order to carry out the procurement, the HWRC Waste Acceptance Policy has been reviewed following public consultation on proposed changes to make savings or generate income.

The purpose of this report is to seek approval for the revised Waste Acceptance Policy and authority to procure the new HWRC management contract.

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to

(a)          Agree the proposed changes to the HWRC Waste Acceptance Policy described in the report and the draft policy in Annex 2;

(b)         Approve the procurement of the HWRC management contract on the basis of the service described in the report and the draft specification in Annex 3;

(c)          Delegate authority to the Director for Environment and Economy in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Environment for;

i)             final editing of the service specification and Waste Acceptance Policy prior to and during procurement,

ii)            finalisation of the Waste Acceptance Policy following the procurement provided any changes are in accordance with the principles set out in the report, and

iii)          approval of the award of the HWRC management contract following completion of the procurement process.

Recommendations agreed.

The information contained in the annexes 3 & 4 is exempt in that it falls within the following prescribed category:

3.         Information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information).

Cabinet considered a report seeking approval for the revised Waste Acceptance Policy and authority to procure the new HWRC management contract, putting into effect the strategy for the future provision of HWRC services approved by Cabinet in December 2015.

Councillor Steve Curran, Shadow Cabinet Member for Environment commended officers for a comprehensive piece of work. He highlighted the answer by members of the public to question 6 which made it clear they did not want to see charges introduced. He recognised the issues and problems and commented that it was important that the proposals did not result in increased fly-tipping of either domestic or commercial waste. The charge must be kept as low as possible. He would be interested to receive information on the impact of the current commercial charges on fly-tipping.

Councillor Nimmo Smith in moving the recommendations highlighted that this was about the management of the existing sites and was not about closing any site. He referred to the experience in the South of the County where Reading had stopped residents of Oxfordshire from using their sites and noted that this had not led to an appreciable increase in fly-tipping.

Andrew Pau, presented in detail the proposed changes to the Policy and the approach being taken to procuring the new contract. Responding to a question from a Cabinet Member on the requirements for testing and liabilities around re-use of electrical goods Andrew Pau explained that this activity would be carried out by charities skilled in such re-use and there would be no liability for the Council.

RESOLVED:             to

(a)          agree the proposed changes to the HWRC Waste Acceptance Policy described in the report and the draft policy in Annex 2;

(b)          approve the procurement of the HWRC management contract on the basis of the service described in the report and the draft specification in Annex 3;

(c)          delegate authority to the Director for Environment and Economy in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Environment for;

i)             final editing of the service specification and Waste Acceptance Policy prior to and during procurement,

ii)            finalisation of the Waste Acceptance Policy following the procurement provided any changes are in accordance with the principles set out in the report, and

iii)           approval of the award of the HWRC management contract following completion of the procurement process.