To consider the responses of representatives of Veolia Waste to the questions of the Committee.
Mr M Cunningham and Mr M Razzell of Veolia will be in attendance at the meeting.
Minutes:
Mr M Cunningham (Partnership Manager – East Kent Waste Partnership) and Mr M Razzell (Operations Manager – East Kent Waste Partnership) were present to answer questions from Members.
Q1. What is the frequency of dog waste bin collection in the district?
The Committee was advised that there were a minimum of three collections per week with busier bins emptied up to twice daily. The target was empty each bin when it reached ¾ full.
Members expressed concern that this was not the case based on their experience and identified the following areas where dog waste bins were often found to be overflowing:
· Deal (Victoria Park, Hamilton Road and Telegraph Road);
· Walmer (Walmer Green); and
· Sandwich
It was also reported that the overflowing dog waste bins led to normal waste bins being used for that purpose.
Mr M Cunningham urged Members to report instances such as these to the helpline so that action could be taken to clear the waste and if necessary adjust the frequency or location of specific dog waste bin emptying. In addition, the waste operatives had a system to log instances of overflowing bins that they witnessed as part of their end of day debrief.
It was acknowledged that Deal was a challenge due to the footfall involved and the lack of vehicle access to the promenade requiring operatives to empty the bins on foot.
The Director of Environment and Corporate Assets advised that the Council was bidding for additional bins in the budget.
Members requested a copy of the dog bin emptying schedule.
Q2. What is the schedule of street cleaning and what is covered as part of the daily routine?
The district was divided into zones which determined the frequency of street cleansing. The zones were cleaned either daily, weekly, monthly or in response to reports. Litter levels were assessed by Dover District Council and Veolia in accordance with government guidelines.
Q3. What are the arrangements for clearing up spilt rubbish after the weekly collection?
The waste crews had brushes to clean up split rubbish and street cleansing vehicles also followed the waste collection vehicles routes to clean up after waste collection. At the end of day debrief waste crews identified areas of concern so this could be responded to. Households were also encouraged not to put their waste out too early as seagulls were known to rip open waste bags to access their contents.
Members were advised that there had been a trial of seagull proof waste bags in Aycliffe and Athol Terrace, Dover and the results of the trial were to be reported to the Portfolio Holder for Environment, Waste and Planning. The provision of seagull proof bags, which were non-disposable large hessian bags with a lid into which waste could be placed, were not part of the current waste contract arrangements. If the decision was taken to implement seagull proof bags on a permanent basis it was not envisaged that seagull proof bags would be rolled out to every house in the district but rather targeted on need.
The Committee welcomed the news of the trial of seagull proof bags and requested that the results of the trial and the cost of implementing it be provided to it.
Councillor M J Holloway suggested that areas, such as in Sandwich, where purple sacks were used be considered a priority in the event that seagull proof bags were implemented.
Q4. Are there any plans to increase the waste collection service for traders in the towns?
This was not a matter for the waste partnership as commercial waste was dealt with separately as residential and commercial waste could not be mixed by law. Members were advised that commercial waste collection could operate a daily collection service if paid for by a business.
RESOLVED: (a) That Mr M Cunningham and Mr M Razzell be thanked for attending the meeting.
(b) That the Scrutiny (Policy and Performance) Committee be provided with a copy of the schedule for dog waste bin emptying.
(c) That the Scrutiny (Policy and Performance) Committee be provided with the results of the seagull proof bag trial and the cost of implementing seagull proof bags permanently in the district.
(d) That the Director of Environment and Corporate Assets be requested to confirm that food waste bins had been implemented in Sandwich.