Report of the Head of Waste Operations and Streetscene.
Minutes:
Waste and Street Scene Presentation:
Considered: a verbal presentation by the Head of Waste Operations and Streetscene and Associate Director for Environmental Services who delivered an update on the services’ progress through LGR and now into the new authority.
Michael Leah (Associate Director for Environmental Services) began by explaining that the new structure was being implemented and had started by appointing Harry Briggs as the Head of Waste Operations and Streetscene. The service was currently working to implement the remaining parts of the finalised Waste and Street Scene structure but they were keen to maintain service delivery and day to day operations which included household collections and a range of other waste services. Performance stats had demonstrated that the service had been unaffected by LGR and as of summer 2023 the service had been taking steps to improve the service’s delivery with some improvements in missed collections and a reduction in complaints.
Harry Briggs continued the presentation and explained that the service was prioritising services that directly affected members of the public such as waste collection, commercial waste services and street cleansing. Whilst maintaining frontline services the team were working to harmonise services across the county and ensure they could respond to the varying needs of the different areas. The service had also formulated costs for services as one team and had now provided one calendar that anyone in the county could use to see when their collection was. There was now an area manager for the Harrogate and Craven region who would be responsible for performance and improving services in the local area.
In terms of the litter bin project Harry explained that there were more than 1500 litter bins in the former Harrogate BC area and it was key to assess the number, location of these litter bins and also the condition over which some concern had been raised. The service was looking to provide a comprehensive service while also lowering operating costs and therefore litter bins were to be emptied in the regular rounds of household collections rather than a dedicated service. They had increased the size of the litter bins so that they had enough capacity to last between these collections. The service was soon to have completed roll-out of the new bins and officers would review the success of the project once it was complete.
In Discussion:
Members expressed concern about the placement of the new bins which were often closer to a road than where members of the public actually needed them. Another concern was raised about dog poo litter bins and whether there was a consistent policy and communications to advise members of the public. There was significant concern that if these litter bins are going to be emptied only once a fortnight then this could become a public health hazard. In responding to these points Harry explained that they were wheely bins and placed close to roads so that the collection teams could access them easily. As the project was near completion now was the right time to review the location and number of bins and officers would take the feedback from members into account during the review. Harry confirmed that officers would meet with Knaresborough Town Council for a site visit and consider any collection or enforcement issues.
Michael explained policies for the service were currently being reviewed and he was keen to look at littering, he would consult with Members and community groups to gauge what could be done to eliminate littering in their respective areas. In response to a question about street cleansing Harry explained that resources were not being reduced, it was just a case of assessing where best to use specific resources. In response to a question about the roll-out of the domestic blue bins, Michael advised that this was a policy of HBC and the new service was still looking at harmonising services one of which was household collections. The reasons some households had these new wheely bins and others did not was primarily down to the way the collections rounds were formulated, ultimately they were looking to have wheelie bins county wide as soon as funding was available. In response to a question about bin placement strategy aligning with major walking routes in and out of town it was confirmed that the service would be happy to consult on any such areas of concern. Michael also explained that he had discussed a text communication service with the Council’s communications team and a county wide text service would require funding before it could be instituted. Councillor Aldred expressed his thanks to the service for its professional and reliable approach to collections regardless of the weather. In response to a question Michael confirmed that the service took the weather and safety of crews seriously, during the hot period in the summer the crews were permitted to wear sun hats and shorts and water had been provided.
- CCTV was standard in all new vehicles and was there for reasons such as welfare and to provide evidence in cases where it was claimed that a bin lorry had collided with someone or something. It was not there to monitor the behaviour or performance of the crews.
- In response to a question from Councillor Slater Michael explained that it would be mandatory for Councils to make weekly food waste collections from 2026. NYC, working in partnership with York Council, had received permission to delay the transition to food collection until 2043 to allow for the end of the contract with Allerton Waste Recovery Park. The Leader of the Council had written to DEFRA to see if the Council could achieve an earlier date, the Government had subsequently allotted £4.8m to each Council to be spent on setting up food collection services but they were withholding the money until a service was operational. The Council was appealing to the Government for these funds beforehand which would allow the Council to set the service up