Meeting documents

Cabinet
Tuesday, 6 September 2005

CA060905-11

Division(s): N/A

Report by Head of Sustainable Development

Introduction

The Oxfordshire Waste Partnership (OWP) is a partnership of each of the District Councils and the County Council to promote the effective, efficient and sustainable management of household and municipal waste in Oxfordshire. The OWP has been meeting on a regular basis for a number of years and provides an effective forum for partnership working on waste matters. Each authority is represented by its Cabinet Member or equivalent. This report deals with two issues which OWP has recently had under consideration, as well as giving a brief analysis of progress towards sustainable waste management in general.

Memorandum of Understanding

The OWP operates within a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) agreed between the Oxfordshire authorities in 2000. It is now felt timely to revise and improve the MoU. The OWP last considered the wording of the MoU at its meeting on 30 June and agreed to recommend the wording attached as Annex 1 to the constituent authorities. (A copy of the 2000 MoU can be seen in the Members’ Resource Centre.)

Progress Towards Sustainable Waste Management

The Oxfordshire authorities have been making good progress towards sustainable waste management. Last year (2004/05) Oxfordshire achieved a combined recycling and composting rate of 30.15%. This is good performance in national terms and in advance of our targets. Last year Oxfordshire also achieved the lowest waste per head figure of any disposal authority at only 490kg head of population. Our recycling centres achieved an average recycling rate of over 48%.

This year the government is supporting a study into closer partnership working and how this can help the delivery of sustainable waste management in Oxfordshire. It is envisaged that this work will produce a plan for how the waste authorities in Oxfordshire can structure themselves to deliver the best and most sustainable waste service at the lowest possible cost.

The Audit Commission are also carrying out a three stage inspection of the Waste Management Partnership in Oxfordshire. This inspection will result in score for the partnership and this score will be used for the Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA) of each of the individual waste authorities.

Good progress is being made to achieve the Public Service Agreement (PSA) stretch target of 33% for recycling and composting county wide. However, this will need to be closely monitored to ensure it is reached and the full financial reward secured.

Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant

The Government announced in December 2004 the creation of a three year targeted grant (the Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant), to provide funding to local authorities to introduce more recycling systems, to undertake long term strategic planning and to promote increased and more effective partnership working in two tier areas such as Oxfordshire.

Nationally the grants will amount to £40 million in 2005/06, £105 million in 2006/07 and £110 million in 2007/08, a total of £255 million over the three years. Oxfordshire’s share of this funding will amount to approximately £500,000 in year one, £1.3 million and £1.35 million in years two and three.

To encourage joint working, the Government has said that for years two and three it is considering making single allocations of these grants to the relevant partnerships of authorities in two-tier areas. Government has also said that it will consult on this proposal during this year. Government have issued a list of suggestions for the use of the funding – see Annex 2.

The Oxfordshire Waste Partnership (OWP) considered the Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant at its meeting on 7 April 2005 and recommended partner authorities to agree that the Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant awards for 2006/07 and 2007/08 should be ring-fenced by individual authorities to further joint working and to facilitate increased recycling and composting both from a collection and a disposal point of view. The OWP Officer Group will review all options available for administering this funding, following the proposed DEFRA consultation on such matters. This may involve some form of joint pooling arrangement through to individual authorities buying in to specific joint projects.

Each of the five District Councils has now agreed this recommendation and it would be in the interest of partnership working for the County Council also to agree it.

Environmental Implications

Ring fencing the Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant for the purposes indicated will lead to more sustainable waste management and therefore have positive environmental benefits.

Financial Implications

The amount of the Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant that Oxfordshire County Council received in 2005/6 was £284,328.67. This has been used within the Waste Management Budget for the purposes suggested by Government.

Further grant allocations for 2006/7 and 5007/8 will depend on DEFRA policy and the results of this year’s consultation exercise.

RECOMMENDATIONS

agree the revised Memorandum of Understanding as set out in Annex 1 and authorise the Cabinet Member for Sustainable Development and Chief Executive to sign the revised it on behalf of Oxfordshire County Council;

authorise the Cabinet Member for Sustainable Development to agree any minor amendment to the Memorandum that may be necessary in the future;

agree that the Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant award for 2006/07 and 2007/08 be ring-fenced to further joint working and to facilitate increased recycling and composting both from a collection and a disposal point of view.

CHRIS COUSINS
Head of Sustainable Development

Background papers: Nil

Contact Officer: Andrew Pau, Head of Waste Management Tel: Oxford 815867