As part of the scrutiny review it had been decided this committee would focus on the Waste Strategy Implementation where Members could discuss as this developed. Daren Spring provided members with the following updates:

·         In November 2020, Cabinet agreed the new Waste Strategy and to progress with the following collection regime: Alternate Weekly Refuse Collection, Weekly Recycling Collection, Alternate Weekly Garden Waste Collection   and Weekly Food Waste Collection.

·         Cabinet also agreed that Thurrock Council would lead by example and act to reduce and where possible eliminate, single use plastics.

·         Overall aim of the Waste Strategy would be to education, empower and enforce by reducing, reusing, recycling, recovering and disposal.

·         Some of the operational changes would be the introduction of Separate Food-waste collections (September 2022), alternate Weekly General (green/grey bins) waste collections, weekly recycling collections remain the same, however round rationalisation will be carried out to synchronise recycling and food waste collections on the same vehicle/day of collection, purchase of 20 x new collection-vehicles, new livery to reflect the relaunch of waste collections and promote recycling, provide greater capacity, replacing older vehicles from our existing fleet, 10 x ‘Dual-compartments’ for ‘Food-Waste & Recycling’ on same vehicle, 10 x Larger Refuse Collection vehicles, allowing some resilience for property-numbers increasing over coming years, renewal of current waste-disposal contracts to include separate food-waste collections with potential to provide greater efficiencies and alternate-weekly garden waste collections would remain.

·         The new service roll out would include - tender for the supply & delivery of Food-Caddies – January 2022, new larger refuse-collection vehicles due for delivery (4x in Jan/6x in Mar) and would be put straight into service, Comms Strategy to commence to trickle-feed messaging around the new services – March 2022, new ‘Vehicle-Naming’ competition to be completed before school’s close for Easter, Food-Caddies - Delivery out to residents by Contractors and collection the following week – September 2022.

·         Information was provided on what household waste and recycling would go in which bin.

·         The national target for recycling had been set at 50% with Thurrock yet to meet the target. There was clear evidence that fortnightly collections and the introduction of food waste led to an increase in the level of dry cycling.

·         This committee would be updated on the implementation timescales, communication materials, vehicle livery and other project matters.

Councillor Redsell thanked Daren Spring for the update and questioned when the last time residents had been sent a bin sticker was or information that identified what went in each bin and the schedule of brown bins seems to have caused some confusion for residents. Members were informed that this information would have been sent out some 18 months ago following the recommendation from the Waste Management Working Group but were informed this information was on the council’s website.

Members discussed the delivery of new vehicles and were looking at electric vehicles for the next phase and that a vehicle naming competition would be taking place.

Councillor Redsell state that this service always performed brilliantly and asked for this to be fed back to staff.