London top-down waste strategy ‘will not work’

11 February 2010

LONDON’S waste strategy will not work if it is “top-down”, according to the Mayor’s advisor on the environment, Isabel Dedring.

She was speaking at City Hall yesterday as the London Assembly Environment Committee met to review the Mayor’s draft waste strategy, London’s Wasted Resource, which concerns plans to reduce the quantity of municipal waste sent to landfill.

Environment Committee chair Murad Qureshi has criticised the strategy, which was released on 18th January,
for its lack of “strategic direction”.

A main issue the committee raised at its meeting was the variation in recycling rates across the 32 London boroughs.

Members agreed that a ‘one size fits all’ approach to recycling in London might not work, but wanted to know how the Mayor would address the issue.

Ms Dedring said: “Imposing something from the top down isn’t an option in our arsenals. It is not a realistic option.”

More discussion between the boroughs needed to be encouraged to try to increase recycling rates, she added.

“We do think that the proactive option of getting boroughs together just doesn’t happen,” she said.

“There are lots of discussions going on but there isn’t a single place where people can come together and talk about what works.”

The committee made a number of suggestions, including a ‘name and shame’ system whereby boroughs with poor recycling rates would be exposed in an attempt to get them to improve.

In terms of recycling rates, “Greenwich is now third because it made the decision to change its system,” said assembly member Gareth Bacon.

“Some boroughs haven’t bothered to take it seriously while others have. So perhaps we are getting to the stage where some sort of name and shame, as well as name and praise will help.”

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