Government & Agency News NATIONAL GRID WINS £5M OFGEM


FUNDING FOR GAS BILL STUDY National Grid Gas Distribution, working with DNV GL, has been awarded £4.8m of funding under Ofgem’s Network Innovation Competition. The money will be used for a three-year pilot study to update the way gas bills are calculated, to take into account more of the green, lower carbon alternatives to natural gas likely to be powering homes and businesses in the future. The initiative aims to cut out the use of propane – which is currently being added to biomethane for gas billing reasons – which should open the door to more green gas entering Britain’s gas pipeline network and cement its essential role in meeting the UK’s carbon reduction targets for 2030 and 2050. “Ofgem’s decision to award National Grid £4.8m for this programme reflects how serious the UK’s gas grids are about delivering low carbon heat, as well as delivering a sustainable gas future which works for consumers as well,” says David Parkin, Director of Network Strategy at National Grid Gas Distribution. See biomethane feature, p8 www.nationalgrid.com www.ofgem.gov.uk


WASTE IN WESTMINSTER Our PR & Parliamentary Affairs Executive, Chris Noyce, reports on the latest waste news from Parliament


GOOD THINGS COME TO THOSE WHO SEPARATE WASTE


Making more inedible food waste available as feedstock continues to be a key challenge for the UK AD industry. With recycling rates going down and food waste levels going up, ADBA has continued to push government to roll out separate food waste collections across England to emulate the examples of the devolved administrations in reversing these worrying trends.


EA’S DEFINITION OF WASTE


PANEL TO REMAIN CLOSED The Environment Agency (EA) temporarily suspended the Definition of Waste Panel last autumn, as it was unable to continue resourcing this free-to-use service. The EA has since revealed that this closure will continue until further notice: The Definition of Waste Panel is closed until further notice whilst its role and purpose is reviewed in the context of our waste regulation strategy. Guidance on determining the waste status of your material can be found here: http://bit.ly/2l4k9oG


Members with queries about the legal definition of waste are advised to discuss them with local EA officers, who should be able to provide advice. www.gov.uk/government/organisations/environment-agency


The Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (EFRA) Committee’s inquiry into the economic, social and environmental impact of food waste in England is ongoing, and has taken written and oral evidence from a range of key stakeholders, including our Chief Executive, Charlotte Morton. Charlotte set out to the Committee the key role that AD can play in reducing food waste and recycling inedible food waste, and called on Defra to proactively enforce the waste hierarchy. Convincing the government to invest in rolling out separate food waste collections across England will not be easy given its budgetary constraints, but the environmental imperatives and economic benefits of reducing food waste mean that such collections are a necessity.


Charlotte and I also held a very successful meeting in December with Kerry McCarthy MP, who sits on the EFRA and Environmental Audit Committees and shares our desire to tackle the issue of food waste. Kerry was happy for us to suggest some written Parliamentary questions around Defra’s enforcement of the waste hierarchy, metrics for success for WRAP’s Framework for Consistency in Household Waste Collections, and the costs and benefits of separate food waste collections, which she then submitted to Environment Minister, Andrea Leadsom. We thank Kerry for her support.


Elsewhere, parliamentary activity continues to be dominated by Brexit, and the nature of the UK’s new relationship with the European Union will have significant implications for areas such as farming, energy and transport. Meanwhile, the government’s Industrial Strategy, Bioeconomy Strategy and Emissions Reduction Plan offers huge opportunities for AD to play a key role in moving to a low carbon economy.


www.adbioresources.org adbioresources.org SPRING 2017 | AD & BIORESOURCES NEWS 31


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