Doing our bit against climate change

1.54.58pm GMT Tue 31st Oct 2006

Conservatives vote against Trial of Food Waste Collection

On the day that Sir Nicholas Stern published his devastating report on the likely economic impact of climate change, Liberal Democrat borough councillors were urging Guildford's Conservatives to do their bit. On 30 October, the Borough Council's Environment Scrutiny Committee discussed comparative recycling rates for district councils across Surrey, and the Borough Council's service and financial plans for recycling.

Cllr Liz Hogger, the Liberal Democrats' Environment Spokesperson, pointed out that Guildford's increase in recycling rates was one of the lowest in Surrey, up only 1.16% from 23.57% in 2004/5 to 25% in 2005/6. This compares with an 11.4% increase in neighbouring Mole Valley, which achieved a 29.2% recycling rate in 2005/6. Cllr Hogger said "The important figures are those for recycling materials such as paper, cardboard, glass and plastic - these are taken out of the black bags and out of landfill. The borough's recycling rate for this is flat-lining, and others are overtaking fast."

Cllr Hogger said that the garden waste collection scheme was very worthwhile, but didn't actually take much waste out of landfill. Before the scheme was introduced, the garden waste probably ended up in garden bonfires, mouldering in the corner of gardens, or was driven to civic amenity sites. So for the Conservatives to claim credit for high composting rates of garden waste was not helping our environment. The key issue to help fight climate change was to get kitchen food waste out of the black bags going to landfill. That waste forms about a quarter of the average black sack, and generates the damaging greenhouse gas methane when it goes to landfill.

Cllr Hogger said "We have been pressing the Conservative County Council to provide food waste composting facilities for years. We have waited long enough. The Stern report has spelt out the consequences of not doing enough about climate change. We should invest now in facilities to divert food waste from landfill, so reducing greenhouse gas emissions - delay is false economy for our environment. It's time to do our bit."

Cllr Hogger proposed that the council's financial plan should include a trial collection service of food waste for composting in 2007/8, and borough-wide collection of food waste during 2008/9. Seconding the proposal, Cllr Merilyn Spier (Lib Dem, Merrow) said "It should be practical to do a trial of food waste collection in the next financial year - I have every confidence officers could find composting facilities for this not too far away. And I would suggest Merrow as an ideal trial area - we were part of the recent trial for plastic collection, and I know my residents are very keen to do their bit to fight climate change."

The Lib Dem proposal was defeated on the casting vote of the Conservative Chairman of the Scrutiny Committee. The vote was 6 Lib Dem and 1 Labour in favour of the food waste proposal, and 7 Conservatives against. Instead the Conservatives agreed to address the problems of food waste 'when the facilities were available'. The Conservative majority on the committee also rejected a Lib Dem proposal to fund the collection of batteries to keep them out of landfill.