Council needs to tackle the Leeds 'waste mountain' - or pay the price (Leeds Liberal Democrats)

Leeds Liberal Democrats <info@leedslibdems.org.uk>

Council needs to tackle the Leeds 'waste mountain' - or pay the price

October 30, 2003 12:00 AM

Leeds City Council sends more municipal waste to landfill than ever before, despite the increasing cost of disposing of waste in this way….

Councillor Andrew Tear (Lib Dem, Harehills), will put a White Paper to next Tuesday's full meeting of Leeds City Council calling for it to investigate additional sources of funding to boost levels of recycling in the city.

Cllr Tear said "Leeds simply can't afford to carry on burying huge amounts of waste in rubbish dumps. As well as the environmental costs, the Council pays an absolute fortune on waste disposal. With the landfill tax set to rise from the current level of £14 per tonne to £35 per tonne over the next few years, landfill is just not sustainable."

"More must be done to encourage people to take responsibility for the waste they produce, and recycling schemes are a key part of this. That's why I'm asking the Council to instruct its Officers to look into the availability of more funding for recycling initiatives. Steady progress has been made in recent years, helped by things like the introduction of green bins in some areas, but the depressing truth is that we're sending more waste to landfill than ever before."

"The Council needs to provide more recycling Drop-Off sites, such as bottle banks, and include facilities on those sites to recycle other materials like plastics. We also need to look at improvements to kerbside collection schemes, especially in the outlying areas. On top of this, much more has to be done to raise peoples' awareness of the recycling facilities that are on offer. For example, the recent introduction of green bins in Harehills and Burmantofts has been hampered by a lack of advice for local people on what can and can't be put in them".

Notes to Editors:

1. While the amount of household waste recycled in Leeds has risen slightly, the total amount going to landfill is increasing. In 97/98 242,959 tonnes (91.67%) of the total waste generated (265,036 tonnes) went to landfill, while in 2001/02 280,140 tonnes (85.24%) of the household waste total, including inert materials (328,648 tonnes) went to landfill. (Source: Environment Leeds, 2003 Leeds State of the Environment Report).

2. The Landfill Tax, currently £14 per tonne, will rise to £15 per tonne in 2004/5. In subsequent years it will rise by at least £3 per tonne annually until it reaches the Government's target rate of £35 per tonne.

3. Leeds City Council currently pays £23m per year on refuse collection and waste management. This figure will rise by £500K next year, with increases becoming much larger as the Landfill Tax starts to rise by £3 per tonne every year. (Source: Environment Leeds, 2003 Leeds State of the Environment Report).

4. The Government has recently announced that £135 million will be made available for local authorities carrying out sustainable waste management initiatives through the Waste Minimisation and Recycling Fund, and the Waste Performance Reward Grant.