Environment Policy and Review Panel - Tuesday, 6th September, 2016 7.00 pm - Agenda and minutes

To note the appointment of Cr. C.P. Grattan to the Environment Policy and Review Panel as a representative of the Labour Group for the remainder of the 2016/17 Municipal Year. The appointment has been made in accordance with the arrangements for the political balance.

RESOLVED:  That the appointment of Cr. C.P. Grattan to the Environment Policy and Review Panel for the remainder of the 2016/17 Municipal Year be noted.

To confirm the Minutes of the Meeting held on 7 June, 2016 (copy attached).

The Minutes of the Meeting held on 7th June, 2016 were approved and signed by the Chairman.

To receive a presentation from the Council’s Energy and Environment Manager on reducing our energy costs through energy efficiency measures on Council owned premises.

The Panel received a presentation from the Council’s Energy and Environment Manager on reducing energy costs through energy efficiency measures on Council owned premises.  The Panel was advised that the Council had a legal obligation to reduce carbon emissions.  The energy efficiency measures introduced to reduce carbon emission would also result in cost savings for the Council.  In addition, the Council had a role in leading by example for the community.

The Council’s carbon footprint was calculated by measuring: gas and electricity usage in buildings managed by the Council and those buildings used by other organisations; staff and contractor business rail and car travel; and, fleet vehicle fuel usage.  Work has been undertaken to reduce gas usage by isolating boiler systems and installing remote timers which had resulted in £93,000 of savings per year.  The Crematorium was responsible for the highest proportion of the Council’s gas consumption (63%) but there was currently no technology available to reduce the usage. 

Other improvements that had been introduced to reduce the Council’s carbon footprint included upgrading street and car park lighting, upgrading lighting to LED in Council buildings, and the installation of solar PV.  Solar PV had been installed at five Council buildings which had resulted in £57,210 Feed-In-Tariff income since 2011 and saved approximately £3,500 in electricity costs per year.  The main barrier for the installation of solar PV on other Council buildings was due to weak roofs which were unable to support the weight of the panels.

The Panel NOTED the presentation.

To receive a presentation from the Pollution and Environmental Control Environmental Health Manager regarding the Council’s role, and that of other bodies, on flooding in the Borough, as outlined by the Flood and Water Management Act 2010.

The Panel received a presentation from the Pollution and Environmental Control Environmental Health Manager on the Council’s role, and that of other bodies, on flooding in the Borough.  Provisions were contained in the Flood and Water Management (FWM) Act 2010, which was introduced following major flooding across the country in 2006/07.  The 2006/07 floods had a major impact on Ash Road and the surrounding area and areas around Cove Brook; work had subsequently been undertaken to address the flooding issues in these areas.

As a result of the new FWM Act, roles had been assigned to respond to flooding.  Hampshire County Council was the Lead Local Flood Authority and was required to develop a Multi-Agency Flood Plan and act as the co-ordinating body for the Risk Management Authorities.  The Risk Management Authorities included: Rushmoor Borough Council (to prevent flooding and respond during an event and recovery); Thames Water Utilities (responsible for surface water and foul sewers); and, the Environment Agency (responsible for main river consents).

The Council had a number of roles under the FWM Act to:

·                Respond to requests for help by providing sand bags to properties at risk of internal flooding.  The Council now had a stock of 2,000 sand bags ready to distribute and residents were also encouraged to purchase their own sand bags.

·                Act as a broker on behalf of residents by liaising with Hampshire County Council, Environment Agency, Thames Water Utilities and private landowners where necessary.

·                Carry out work where the Council was the riparian owner.

·                Advise other riparian owners of their responsibility to maintain and repair banks.

·                Protect Council owned property from flooding.

Measures had been introduced to protect the Borough from flooding in the future.  All new developments were required to ensure that any surface water run-off was no worse than the existing site.  The Surface Water Management Plan had identified eleven hot-spots which would be included in the Rushmoor Local Plan.  The approach adopted in the Local Plan should reduce the likelihood of a flash flooding event in the Borough.  The Environment Agency issued flood warnings and provided advice to public and partners – residents were able to register with the Environment Agency to receive warnings.

The Flood Defence Grant-in-Aid scheme provided funding for investigation works and an application had been submitted in the second tranche for funding for the area around Cove Brook.  Thames Water Utilities was also planning to undertake an Aldershot catchment study looking at improving drainage arrangements and Members would be updated on the study later in the year.

The Panel NOTED the presentation and acknowledged the work that had been carried out by the Council to prevent flooding and responding to flash flooding that had occurred.  There was a view that residents were unaware of a number of issues relating to riparian ownership and who they should contact in the event of flooding.  It was suggested that an education and communication programme was required to provide residents with the information.  It was also proposed that a representative  ...  view the full minutes text for item 11.

To receive a presentation from the Council’s Contracts Manager setting out the details on the current recycling performance in the Borough and options for improvements including the potential financial benefits.

The Panel received a presentation from the Council’s Contracts Manager setting out the details on the current recycling performance in the Borough and options for improvements including the potential financial benefits.  The Council currently collected recycling, glass and garden waste fortnightly and general refuse weekly.  Residents were charged for garden waste collection and bulky waste was collected on request which also incurred a charge. The quality of service provided was high.  However, the recycling rate was poor and the cost of the service was high.

Rushmoor Borough Council was responsible for waste collection in the area but Hampshire County Council (HCC) was responsible for waste disposal.  HCC was ranked as the overall best performing county for waste diversion from landfill but was one of the lower performing areas for recycling.  The range of materials for recycling was also limited but Rushmoor could only accept items specified for recycling by HCC.  In the national performance table Rushmoor was rated very low, all Hampshire authorities were ranked in the bottom third.  The waste contract currently cost Rushmoor around £2.1m per year.  Following a benchmarking exercise conducted in 2015 Rushmoor was ranked as the most expensive waste service per household.

A number of ways to improve recycling had been considered including introducing free garden waste collections and food waste collections.  A Hampshire-wide working group was looking into the options for increasing the range of materials that could be recycled. Incentives to recycle could also be introduced along with an education campaign.  Nevertheless, it was felt this would need to part of a wider campaign to create a significant impact.  Options to restrict the volume of general waste was shown to produce a more significant improvement in recycling rates which could include initiatives such as the use of smaller refuse bins and the introduction of an alternate weekly collection.  A new contract was in the process of being procured which would address some of the high cost issues.

The Alternate Weekly Trial carried out in 2007 showed an increase in the recycling and composting rate from 23% to 36%, although it was noted that this had included kerbside glass collection as a new service for the trial.  There had been a low number of complaints and there had been no significant evidence of any increase in flytipping and vermin during the trial.  There had been some issues highlighted as part of the trial, including the difficulty for flats due to bin capacity and insufficient capacity for larger families.

Cllr Jeremy Preece raised an issue relating to the safe storage of batteries awaiting recycling.  The Contract Manager reported that the issue was being discussed by the Council’s Directors Management Board the following week.  A communications plan was being developed to highlight the message to residents regarding the safe storage of batteries.

The Panel discussed the issues with the cost of the waste service and the poor recycling performance in the Borough and across Hampshire.  The  Panel believed that recycling levels were unsatisfactory and the service  ...  view the full minutes text for item 12.

To receive details on the recommendations from Hampshire County Council following the Household Waste Recycling Centre consultation and the next steps (copy of the HWRC Service Efficiencies Implementation Report attached).

The Panel NOTED the recommendations from Hampshire County Council following the Household Waste Recycling Centre consultation.  The recommendations included a reduction in opening hours, closure of all sites on a Thursday and the introduction of a cross-border charge for non-Hampshire residents.

Cr J. J. Preece to make a request for the Panel to ask the Cabinet to consider the requirement for the provision of overnight toilets in Aldershot Town Centre.

The Panel had been requested by Cr. J.J. Preece to consider the provision of overnight toilets in Aldershot Town Centre.  The Panel requested that the Aldershot Regeneration Task Force should investigate whether there was a requirement for overnight toilets in Aldershot Town Centre.  Cr. Preece also raised the issue of the provision of toilets for the Farnborough Town Centre Sunday Car Boot Sale.  The issues would be raised with the Farnborough Town Centre Working Group to consider.

To adopt the Farnborough Town Centre Working Group Terms of Reference (copy attached).

RESOLVED:  That the Farnborough Town Centre Working Group Terms of Reference be adopted.

To note the Panel’s Current work programme (copy attached).

The Panel NOTED the current work programme.