News Editorial


Red tape, car parts in Cuba and good communications


DEREGULATION IS an interesting concept, isn’t it? Defined by the website, Investopedia, as “the reduction of elimination of government power in a particular industry, usually enacted to create more competition within the industry”, it is ironic that some within the waste management industry are urging the government for “robust governance” in the form of regulation. Take Ray Georgeson, chief


executive of the Resource Association, who bemoans the “mantra of deregulation [that is] still loud in Whitehall” on page 6; particularly when it comes to


Defra’s proposals for tighter MRF regulations. The Association believes this is an area “where a genuine boost to UK industry can result from better regulation and tighter monitoring of quality which will have long term benefits for many in the industry.” Clearly most people don’t want to live in an over-regulated


environment, an extreme example being a communist state (although the good people of China, Cuba, Lao and Vietnam might beg to differ), but surely ‘robust regulations’ doesn’t call for such extreme measures? However, we currently seem about as far removed from a clear


governmental steer on issues such as its waste prevention programme as it is for someone in Havana to find an engine part for a 1950s Chevrolet. The great and the good in materials management are gathering in


Birmingham to discuss the challenges facing the industry and no doubt terms such as ‘the circular economy’ and ‘closing the loop’ are going to ring throughout the conferences held in halls 17-20 of the NEC. But as communication experts are fond of telling us, communication


is a two-way process. So as well as paying government representatives the courtesy of listening to their views (however politically biased they might be), the question is: Will they return the favour and pay close attention to the opinions of the industry, especially when it comes to issues such as implementing robust regulations?


Geraldine Faulkner September 5 - September 11 Issue No. 858


Published by MA Business & Leisure Ltd, Jesses Farm, Snow Hill, Dinton, Wilts SP3 5HN Tel: 01722 716996 Editor Geraldine Faulkner - geraldine@markallengroup.co.uk Advertising enquiries Tom Boatwright - 01722 717016 Classified enquiries Isobel Hunter -01722 717053 Graphic designers Carolyn Allen, Claire White, Bexi Harris Publishing director Sian Harrington Group commercial director Jon Benson Chief executive officer Ben Allen


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Edinburgh gets cleaner


www.markallengroup.com


THE STREETS of Edinburgh are getting cleaner with less incidences of dog fouling and graffiti, according to Keep Scotland Beautiful’s latest assessment. A total of 95% of streets assessed


as part of the Cleanliness Index Monitoring (CIMS) scheme in June this year were found to have “acceptable” levels of litter. This is an increase from 89% in December 2012. Data collated from the assessments are said to have shown an upward trend in performance since 2009 to 2010. A CIMS assessment is carried out


for the City of Edinburgh Council four times a year.


4See Group acquires environmental shares


4SEE GROUP, the Northamptonshire-based health, safety and environmental consultancy has completed the final stage of the acquisition of its environmental business. 4See Group has announced


it has purchased the remaining 25% of 4See Environmental Limited (formerly Burcote Consultancy Limited) from the previous management team who had remained with the business following 4See Group’s investment at the start of 2011. The option to acquire the balance


of the shares is reported to have been part of the original deal and is said to follow “significant growth since 2011”.


2 September 5 2013 According to a 4See Group


spokesperson, despite the continued nationwide difficulties in the property market since the initial purchase, revenues have grown by 60%. Mike Walker,MD of 4See Group


said: “The deal to purchase the balance of the shares was always part of our plans and having doubled shareholder value since 2011, it was a good deal for the 4See Group and the previous shareholders. “Since our initial investment,


with the help of the existing management team, we have not only substantially increased sales and profitability, but also re-engineered and refined the business to more closely meet the needs of our clients,” continued Walker.


www. r e c y c l i n gwa s t ewo r l d . c o . u k


SEPA 2012 compliance figures on the increase


THE SCOTTISH Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) has published its compliance assessment scheme (CAS) figures for 2012. They are reported to show a further improvement in licence compliance from 2011, taking the percentage of operators achieving a rating of ‘excellent’, ‘good’ or ‘broadly compliant’ to 89%; an overall increase of 2% across various regulatory regimes. The CAS reported how well


permitted operators in Scotland have met the conditions of their licences and helped SEPA identify problem areas. It covers operators with pollution prevention and control (PPC) Part A and Part B permits, as well as waste management licenses (WML) and controlled activity regulations (CAR) point source discharges. For the first time under the CAS


scheme, sites licensed under the Radioactive Substances Act (RSA) have also been included in the figures for 2012.


According to SEPA, the


implementation of a risk-based assessment system in 2011 allowed the Agency to reduce the inspections frequency of low risk permits in favour of a more targeted approach to inspecting high risk operations and under-performing sites.With the introduction of RSA sites in this year’s figures, a larger volume of assessments have been carried out in comparison to 2011.


Of the 3,839 licensed activities


assessed in this year’s scheme, 2,855 (74%) were rated ‘excellent’, 526 (14%) as ‘good’ and 40 (1%) as ‘broadly compliant’. The remaining were classed ‘at


risk’ (151 or 4%), ‘poor’ (220 or 6%) and ‘very poor’ (47 or 1%). Calum MacDonald, SEPA’s


executive director, said: “The results of the 2012 compliance assessment scheme are a good indicator that the level of compliance amongst SEPA licence holders is on the rise. “The figures serve as an


important tool in our planning for the year ahead. “We hope to build on the


improvements this year by actively working with operators to provide advice and guidance, to target specific problems, or take enforcement action where necessary, to improve compliance across the board,” added MacDonald.


• Full details and ratings are available at www.sepa.org.uk


Grow MBT market, urges CIWEM


MECHANICAL BIOLOGICAL treatment (MBT) of waste helps recover materials and keep unnecessary waste out of landfills, but more must be done to grow the domestic market for recovered materials, said the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM) recently. Designed to process mixed


household, commercial and industrial wastes, MBT waste processing facilities offer a second chance to recover recyclables before


reaching the landfill, according to the CIWEM in a new policy position statement published last week. “MBT of waste has risen to


prominence within the waste management industry in recent years to help meet the demands of the European Commission’s Landfill Directive. “The facilities combine different


techniques to process mixed waste; mechanical sorting removes recyclables before further biological treatment is employed,” said a CIWEM spokesperson. The CIWEM urged the


government to continue the expansion of the domestic markets for MBT recovered materials. “Whilst wemust be aiming for


greater resource efficiency and recycling at the kerbside first and foremost, MBT facilities are an additional tool in our sustainable waste management toolkit,” said Laura Grant, CIWEM policy officer.


Manchester offers tours of landfill


RECYCLE FOR Greater Manchester is throwing open its doors to visitors in September as part of the Heritage Open Days event organised by English Heritage. Heritage Open Days, organised by


English Heritage, celebrate England’s architecture and culture by allowing visitors free access to interesting properties not usually open to the public, or those that would usually


attract an entrance fee. Recycle for Greater Manchester will be offering tours on Thursday, 12 September at 10am and 2pm held at their landfill site and power plant at Pilsworth near Bury. On Friday, 13 September tours are available at 10am and 2pm at the thermal recovery facility and visitor centre in Bolton. These are all free of charge to residents in Greater Manchester.


Jennifer Baker, communications


manager said: “This is a unique opportunity to get a rare glimpse behind the scenes at our landfill site and thermal recovery facility. “At these power plants we release


the energy from waste and each one produces enough electricity to power around 7,000 homes. “We know that people are


increasingly interested in reducing the amount of waste that goes to landfill and hope that by coming and seeing what happens at our site they will go away inspired to recycle more and waste less,” added Baker. A tour will last two hours. Places are limited so people


are being encouraged to book early by calling 01204 374222 or emailing education@ recycleforgreatermanchester.com


Recycling & WA S T E W O R L D


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