The REA (Association for Renewable Energy and Clean Technology)
welcomes today's publication of
the government's consultation response on Simpler Recycling.
The response includes the confirmation that co-collection of food
and garden waste in one bin will be allowed without the need for
a written assessment. It also provides further details on the
statutory guidance.
REA calls on Treasury to fund public behaviour change campaigns
to encourage consumers to use food and garden waste collections
in the best possible way, using ringfenced funding from the
£100million resource funding already committed to.
Read the REA 2024
Manifesto.
Jenny Grant, Head of Organics and Natural Capital at the
REA (Association for Renewable Energy and Clean Technology),
said:
“The REA welcomes the Government's post-consultation response on
Simpler Recycling with further clarity on the requirements,
enabling industry to make progress towards implementation.
“The success of these reforms, in part, relies on citizens
understanding their collections and putting the right materials
in the correct bins. It is welcome that Government have
recognised this, and we look forward to the public facing
communications. It is essential that adequate funding is provided
to drive effective behaviour change.
“Treating food and garden wastes by organically recycling them is
essential in the fight against climate change. We welcome the
proposals that Local Authorities can choose to co-collect food
and garden waste together without the need for a written
assessment as it gives flexibility and enables them to choose the
most effective system for their area.
“With the requirement for weekly food waste collections and the
removal of putrescible waste, it is difficult to understand the
reasoning behind the requirement for residual waste to be
collected at least fortnightly, or preferably more frequently.
Local authorities should be free to choose the frequency of
residual waste collections that will drive high performing
recycling collections.
“It is also disappointing that Defra have no plans to fund Local
Authorities to provide caddy liners for food waste collections,
not even at least where food waste (whether or not co-collected
with garden waste) goes to in-vessel composting, where it's
important that liner types used are certified industrially
compostable ones.”
