Bradford Council has secured £62.1 million from the Government to contribute to the increasing cost of dealing with the district's household waste in the future.
Officers from the Council attended a review meeting at the Treasury on Tuesday, March 25, to seek PFI (private finance initiative) funding to help find a long-term solution to dealing with waste produced in the district.
And it was announced today, April 7 that its bid has been successful.
The Council is collaborating with neighbours Calderdale Council on this project to both Councils’ benefit. The project will secure diversion of waste from landfill to meet Government and European targets.
The Councils currently send around 75 per cent of their household waste to landfill. The remainder is recycled or composted. However, the Government intends to impose heavy taxes on landfill and fines for Councils that exceed their quotas, as does the European Union, so local authorities need to investigate alternative methods of managing and disposing of waste.
Officers and councillors of both Councils have been visiting various facilities across the country looking at alternative technologies, including energy from waste, mechanical treatment, composting, autoclaving and anaerobic digestion. (See below for definitions of these terms).
Some of these methods separate materials for recycling, composting or create a fibre which can be used as material for manufacturing (autoclaving). These can be combined with treatment methods that produce electricity or a by-product which can be used as a fuel for heat and power (energy from waste).
All the options available to the Council will be assessed in terms of value for money and environmental impact and residents will be fully consulted throughout the process.
Ian Bairstow, Bradford Council's head of waste management, said: "This funding to support the long term solution is good news, although it still only represents a very small proportion of the increasing cost of waste treatment.
"The Council will face a huge increase in the cost of dealing with the waste it collects as it meets the increasing levels of waste taxation and is forced into using these new technologies.
"The Council is keeping an open mind about the type of technology it might use to deal with its waste. New technologies are emerging and the solution has to be the one that delivers value for money, protects the environment and is acceptable to local residents."
Officer/Contact
Ian Bairstow
Assistant Director of Waste and Street Scene
Telephone: 01274 437400
Media Relations Officer
Sarah Bayliss
Telephone: 01274 433526
Fax: 01274 432005
Email: press.communications@bradford.gov.uk
Date: 08.04.08
