Agenda item

To receive a report of the Head of Scrutiny and Member Development on the opportunity to raise questions and issues with the Executive Board Member with responsibility for Environmental Services.

(Report attached)

The Head of Scrutiny and Member Development submitted a report which afforded Scrutiny Board Members the opportunity to put questions to the Executive Board Member with responsibility for Environmental Services.

Opening the session the Chair welcomed Councillor S Smith, Neil Evans, Director of Environment and Neighbourhoods, Steve Smith, Head of Environmental Services and Pippa Milne, Recycling and Waste Manager to the meeting.

The Executive Board Member informed the meeting that his portfolio no longer had responsibility for buildings, catering, highways and street lighting but that sustainability and climate change had been added to his portfolio. 

Councillor Smith informed the meeting that in terms of moving forward, one of the biggest challenges for the Environment and Neighbourhoods Department was the Leeds Waste Strategy which still required a large amount of work .  He then went on to inform the meeting that, in order to achieve the targets for the Leeds Waste Strategy, Leeds City Council would need to double its recycling percentage.

The following issues were also raised:

·  The success of the pilot scheme for garden waste.

·  The Council’s proposals for fortnightly collection of the green waste bins and the reduction in the number of black bin to alternate collections.

·  The problems with hard to reach properties which currently do not have  recycling collections.

·  The need for architects to design better facilities for recycling in any new-build in Leeds in the future.

·  The proposals for the provision of education and information for every household on recycling, including bulky household collections.

·  The need to review the current arrangements for grounds maintenance.

·  The recognition that the current pay and grading review would impact on the service.

·  The need to establish mainstream funding for the services paid for by NRF monies.

·  The need to merge Environmental Health with Environmental Enforcement in order to provide a better service for the local population.

·  The need to monitor more closely  the Council’s contract for pest control. 

·  The need to bring forward the Council’s Climate Change Strategy.

The Executive Board Member for Environmental Services and the Officers responded to Members’ questions and comments on the following issues:

·  The Department’s current position for the replacement of faulty or destroyed litterbins.

·  The Department’s response to the complaints regarding vermin in the Holbeck area as well as the City Centre areas.

·  After taking into account the City’s statistics for recycling to date, the levels of confidence that the City will be able to achieve the targets set for recycling.

·  The potential role for Area Committees in the provision of streetscene services.

·  Consideration of a collection service for those household who put out their black bin only when it is full (instead of it being collected weekly).

·  The provision of compost bins and the practicality of households reducing their waste through home composting.

·  The Board requested the original full list of proposed sites for the energy from waste plant. 

·  The provision for educating children in schools about recycling.

·  The future treatment of food waste.

Concluding the debate, the Chair thanked the Executive Board Member and the Director of Environment and Neighbourhoods, together with Officers for  attending today’s meeting.

RESOLVED - 

(a)  The an update report be submitted to a future meeting on the City’s   problems with vermin.

(b)  That all Members of Scrutiny Board (Environment and   Neighbourhoods) be supplied with a list of the original sites considered   for the proposed energy from waste plant.