The private sector trade group, UROC, has drawn up a list of waste businesses able to help councils maintain collection and disposal services.
UROC’s list comes as the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said it “stands ready” to support councils in ensuring waste collections are prioritised during the coronavirus pandemic.
Councils across the country have been hit by staff shortages in recent weeks leading to collections being altered in many areas.
UROC members are already involved in helping out during the epidemic: pictured is Edward Crossan, vice chairman of Powerday, part of the company team helping to deliver meals to Watford General Hospital
Already, a number of authorities have made changes to their collections with some temporarily axing green waste collections, halting recycling collections and scores of civic amenity sites and household waste recycling centres have closed.
And, with many waste streams from commercial companies slowing, discussions have been taking place with the private waste sector, to see how it could help.
Meetings
Meetings between Defra and representatives of the waste management industry are being held weekly during the current coronavirus crisis.
In a statement, the Department said that it will do “whatever is necessary” to ensure waste collections continue.
Defra noted: “The Government stands ready to do whatever is necessary to support councils in their response to coronavirus, and we are working with them and the waste industry to ensure that waste collections are prioritised to protect the environment and human health.”
UROC
On the back of the latest meeting last Thursday (26 March), skip hire and waste sector trade association UROC (the United Resource Operators Consortium) wrote to Defra with a list of companies who are willing to help and this is available via the links below.
Click above to see the list of operators availability, opens as an Excel file
The idea is that local authorities can find companies in their area who are able to help with services such as frontline collections, as well as collecting material which may have gone to recycling centres, and transport of waste and recyclables to onward destinations.
The current list of operators able to provide services, supplied by UROC, is here: Independent Waste Operators – Critical Service Provision (opens as Excel file).
The consortium said the list will be added to as more companies sign up.
‘Ready to step in’
Speaking with letsrecycle.com, UROC chief executive, Jennifer Watts, said the the private sector can help in a number of ways.
“All workers in the waste industry are deemed key workers and the role they play is important.
“The private sector is ready to step in when needed and we have had many members contact us to confirm their range of operations and services which could be vital, especially for plugging gaps in the collection and processing of materials that some local authorities have stopped servicing such as plastics and greenwaste.
“Not collecting these waste streams will have serious knock-on effects, so it’s important that, where possible, this waste continues to be collected.”
Resources
Discussions have also been taking place in the industry about how resources can be combined to ensure collections aren’t disrupted.
“We are working with councils and the waste industry to ensure that waste collections are prioritised”
Waste and recycling businesses in London and South East England are also offering service provision to help local authorities who are short of crews and drivers
An online meeting was held last week between the London Waste & Recycling Board (LWARB) and other local authority stakeholders to discuss the potential provision by the companies in the face of diminished crew numbers relating to the coronavirus epidemic (see letsrecycle.com story).
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Source: letsrecycle.com Waste Managment
