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LARAC Calls For Clarity Over Waste Policy Authorities

13 January 2012

In 2012 the government must live up to its claims to be the UK's greenest government ever, is the latest message from the Local Authority Recycling Advisory Committee (LARAC) but expects more "policy confusion"

Chair of LARAC, Joy Blizzard, has called for clarification to determine who is in charge of the UK's waste policy.

Speaking to letsrecycle.com, Joy Blizzard, chair of LARAC, said that more clarity was needed to determine who is in charge of waste policy in the UK: "Is it the Department of Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) or the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG)?"

The lines have been blurred between Defra and the DCLG, partly due to the unveiling of a £250m fund for weekly waste collections by communities secretary Eric Pickles even though waste is an issue primarily handled by Defra.

However, LARAC is unsure as to whether the situation will be easily resolved, according to Ms Blizzard. Speaking about her expectations for the year ahead, she said: "I am hoping to see more hands on thinking from the government to deliver on its claims to be the greenest government ever. However I am expecting to see more policy confusion between Defra and the DCLG."

Ms Blizzard also stated that, despite the government's push for weekly residual waste collections, she is expecting to see the continued roll-out of alternate weekly collections and, hopefully, an increase in food waste collections.

"I think this year the move towards alternate weekly waste collections will continue as finances are so tight. We may also start to see a rise in food waste collections."

However she claimed that the roll-out of food waste collections could prove problematic on the ground for local authorities as while they offer long-term savings, it might be more difficult for councils to see an immediate return.

LARAC hopes to continue to emphasise the importance of communication with the public about recycling throughout the year.

Commenting on the importance of such schemes Ms Blizzard said: "The communications budget seems to be the first to go, which in the long term is never very good. We know we have to continue communicating with the public about the importance of waste reduction and recycling."

However she remained positive that LARAC would continue to support its members and deliver on its four main aims and objectives through the provision of information and by laying out best practice guidelines. She stated that LARAC was not expecting to see any major changes to its objectives and delivery of them, however some "tweaking", based on a recent members survey, would be undertaken.

www.larac.org.uk

Darrel Moore