LAWR

OPINION Can public sector cope with proposed EU waste targets? The EU's recent review of waste policy proposes more stringent curbs on landfill. The proposals will now be debated and voted on by the European Parliament. Dan Botterill questions whether plans for new targets will actually change anything. hen the EU put for- ward a legislative pro- posal to review waste and recycling targets it was, on the surface at least, a positive step towards accel- erating the reduction in waste being disposed of to landfill and promoting the idea of a circular economy. Will any adopted proposals have legisla- tive teeth and is the idea of a circular economy a little too abstract for our beleaguered public sector? Undeniably the idea of a circular economy represents a significant chal- lenge for the UK as a whole but would EU regulation actually make a dif- ference? Not without changing mind sets. The public sector is no stranger to waste targets but it plays the game along lines of least resistance. To meet the landfill diversion targets organisa- tions simply recycle more or burn the waste to recover energy, which is all at the bottom of the hierarchy. The problem is a cultural one. While attitudes to waste management have changed dramatically over the last ten years the tendency by most organisa- tions is to centre any waste sustain- ability targets on recycling rates. The higher the recycling rate, the more suc- cessful the waste management strat- egy - that's the theory at least. It's accepted that waste is produced and fire fighting measures are introduced to manage it. But is this right and could public organisations really achieve zero waste to landfill targets by 2025 on a recy- cling policy? Perhaps the problem we have in the UK, and other parts of Europe, is an obsession with recycling. Shouldn't more energy be put into reducing and re-using waste in the first place? Isn't this a better environmental and finan- cial strategy for waste and the core of any circular economy framework? The problem is magnified in pub- lic sector organisations due to finan- cial constraints imposed primarily by economic austerity measures. While organisations accept a responsibility for waste they need to manage it at the cheapest possible cost. This usually means outsourcing the problem to the lowest priced waste contractors who will usually use recycling rates as their base measurement for success. Public sector bodies – hospital trusts in particular – produce considerable waste, some of it hazardous too. So what is the solution? According to Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Health Dr Dan Poulter, the NHS spends £14bn on hos- pital goods and services. The NHS is a powerful buyer and must have some influence over the design and delivery of its products. To cut down on waste this is where the change is needed, at the production stage. Packaging needs to be designed and made to be reduced and re-used but there has to be an incentive. Procurement is powerful leverage. More organisations should also look to increase their self-sufficien- cy in terms of waste management. Everything before the waste is gener- ated is completely within an organi- sation's control. In some instances, even where waste does arise, there are solutions that can be deployed on-site that require minimal financial and operational expenditure. This can in turn reduce costs and generate greater self-sufficiency. Waste contractors too should play their part. Rather than see the circular economy as a threat to their business models they should be leading the charge, bringing forward strategies for organisations to think longer term. The circular economy is by no means just for the benefit of the waste pro- ducer. For the public sector this equates to a need to change and this change has to run throughout organisations not just within waste management depart- ments. Focussing strategies around reduce and re-use will save organisa- tions money, while also reducing envi- ronmental impact. It demands a shift in processes and thinking, moving away from a recy- cling targets-driven culture towards a more intelligent circular economy cul- ture. Will the public sector be able to cope with this shift in thinking? Does its culture enable a quick reaction to change? If the public sector is to really reduce costs and meet proposed EU targets, recycling should be one component of the strategy, not the only option. Dan Botterill is chief executive at Cloud Sustainability. W October 2014 Local Authority Waste & Recycling 7 " Perhaps the problem we have in the UK, and other parts of Europe, is an obsession with recycling " The NHS spends £14bn on hospital goods and services

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