Agenda item

The Chairman invited Councillor Parish, who had chaired the Single Use Plastics Informal Working Group to present the final report of the Informal Working Group.  A copy of his presentation is attached.

The Chairman thanked Informal Working Group for their report, and the work they had carried out, and invited questions and comments from the Panel, as summarised below.

At the request of the Chairman, Councillor Mrs Squire addressed the Panel under Standing Order 34.  She explained Norfolk County Council were also looking at Single Use Plastics and had drafted a comprehensive policy which would be passed through their decision making process shortly.  She explained that at Norfolk County Council the use of single use plastics would be minimised where possible and this included the coffee shop and restaurant, which had already made changes by using cans and glass instead of plastic, which had the added benefit of giving a greater return on recycling.  Single use coffee cups would also not be used at County Hall.  Norfolk County Council would also be creating a Charter which organisations and District Councils could sign up to.

Councillor Hopkins referred to the detrimental effect that plastics could have on the environment and how he often saw lots of litter in verges and dykes.  He stated that he supported the recommendations from the Informal Working Group and any other plans for reducing the amount of plastic waste.

In response to a question from the Vice Chairman, the Portfolio Holder for Environment, Councillor Devereux explained the Green Points Scheme had now ended.  It had been a nationally funded three year scheme and had been centrally administered. 

Councillor Mrs Westrop stated that there were some quick wins which could be achieved, such as changes to what was provided in vending machines in Council owned buildings.  She also expressed concerns with problems with community food banks, which had helped reduced waste, but regulations and risks meant that they were difficult to run, even though they were popular.  She hoped that the recommendation to appoint a Member Champion was taken forward so that they could look at issues such as community food banks.

Councillor Mrs Nockolds, the Portfolio Holder for Culture, Heritage and Health introduced an Ambassador for Keep Britain Tidy, who was present at the meeting and was involved in the Refill project and litter picking.  She explained that she worked very hard and congratulated her on her success.

RESOLVED: The Panel supported the recommendations put forward by the Informal Working Group, as set out below:

1. An Officer Focus Group be established, as detailed in the report, to promote internal best practice, make improvements where necessary and to address the issues below.  The group to provide updates to the Environment and Community Panel on an annual basis, or more frequently if required.

a) How to limit the use of single use plastics in buildings under its control and encourage employees and Members to reduce the amount of single use plastics used on council premises. 

            b) In liaison with the Waste and Recycling Manager, Communications         Manager and      relevant Portfolio Holder, draft an internal code of good         practice, which can be presented to a future meeting of the   Environment and Community Panel for             consideration.

            c) Work with procurement to source products which come with less packaging             and generate less waste where possible.

2. The relevant officers be instructed to produce guidance as appropriate on the following:

            a) Guidance to Parish Councils on how they can reduce the use of single use             plastics within their own areas and events associated with them to reduce   single use plastic use across the Borough and to create a common strand of    better waste collection at public events.

            b) Information to be included in Tourist Information guides to include            messages encouraging a reduction in the use of single use plastics and better recycling which will begin to address the increases in litter and waste    collection during the tourist season.

            c) Information to be provided to holiday lets to display information about      reducing plastic use and how recycling is done in West Norfolk with the aim to           reduce the amount of waste material generated in holiday lets.  This will            ensure that people from different parts of the country know how the recycling             system works in West Norfolk.

            d) A Code of Good Practice be provided, via the Planning Department, to    builders and developers to encourage good practice at development sites so            that potential litter, including plastic, is kept secure and recycled or safely          disposed of with the aim of avoiding waste, particularly plastic wrapping and       building materials, from blowing off site and entering the environment.

3. The Waste and Recycling Manager to review how waste generated at holiday parks is managed so that recycling is optimised.

4. The Council to support and promote:

            a) The Refill initiative which allows people to refill water bottles at cafes and             other appropriate outlets, as practiced in Hunstanton.

            b) Good practice relating to reducing plastic waste which some small local business are adopting.

            c) Appropriate initiatives and projects being undertaken by partners and other             local relevant organisations.  

5. That the Council give consideration to marketing campaigns, promoting the following:

a) The food waste service, and that residents can line their caddies with             newspapers if they did not have any bags.

b) The ‘Selling to us’ page on the borough council’s website be amended to encourage recycling and reduction of the amount of single use plastics.

            c) Christmas Wrapping paper campaigns.

            d) Support Norfolk Waste Partnership campaigns including OPRL promotion.

6. The Leader be invited to appoint a Member Champion for Single Use Plastics.

7. The Environment and Community Panel work with the Portfolio Holder for Environment to ensure that they consider and respond to any appropriate Government consultations with regards to Single Use Plastics.

8. The Waste and Recycling Manager and the relevant Portfolio Holder investigate ways to increase recycling levels in tourist areas, including trialling different types of recycling bins.  Part of this investigation would be to determine why recycling bins were unsuccessful when trialled previously in this area.

9. The relevant Portfolio Holder, and Member Champion (if appropriate) keep a watching brief and work with, as appropriate, the Norfolk County Council Task Group looking at single use plastics, feeding back to the Environment and Community Panel as required.

10. The Borough Council to hold a design competition in schools regarding the importance of recycling and the use of single use plastics and the winning design could be wrapped onto the bin collection vehicles. 

11.  The Environment and Community Panel to schedule updates in its Work Programme on the work of the Norfolk Waste Partnership via the Waste and Recycling Manager and relevant Portfolio Holder.