11 April 2018

The Local Authority Recycling Advisory Committee (LARAC) today issued its report on ‘The Future of Local Authority Waste Funding’. Paul Vanston, CEO of INCPEN comments as follows.

‘I recommend all organisations associated with the resources value chain read this LARAC report. It is important for us all to properly understand how it feels to be a local authority councillor or officer during what has been an extremely tough decade of financial tensions, cuts, service roll-backs and competing priorities. Recycling and waste services have often had to lose out to people-based services, which is understandable but not tenable on a sustained basis. LARAC’s report goes to the heart of issues that need to be tackled jointly across the value chain, and with governments, if we are to be a generation that leaves the environment in a better state than we found it.’

‘The relationship between LARAC and INCPEN is effective and based on seeking solutions to problems across the supply chain. The report’s recommendations are areas where INCPEN and our members have been working very intensively in recent times, and especially over the last four months with our joint work with WRAP on packaging reforms.’

‘Packaging design, promoting actual recyclability, and ensuring residents have easy-to-reference labelling on what is recyclable or not – which can be done through the OPRL scheme – are all areas that will help councils with their collection and disposal responsibilities.’

‘The report’s major focus is on alignment of finances with the ambitions of governments and the needs of the overall value chain. In my mind if the whole value chain from design, manufacturer, sales, collection of recyclates and reprocessing were part of one single business, I have no doubt decisions would be made to ensure the collection part of the business was sufficiently funded to deliver the high capture of high quality recyclates needed in other parts of the business. The fact the value chain is more fragmented takes nothing away from the funding needs of councils that work so hard with their residents to get the best results from local services despite the many challenges.’

‘For my part, I have spent many years working across the resources value chain, and doing my best to ensure local authorities have the necessary tools and funding to play a full role. I will continue to do all I can in the current discussions and negotiations on reforming the packaging funding system to ensure councils are at the heart of the success factors we desire.’

END