Local plan - waste

The Herefordshire and Worcestershire Councils have been working together to develop the Best Practicable Environmental Option (BPEO) for the management of waste produced in the two Counties.

The attached reports form the substantive conclusion of an extensive Technical Study and Report carried out by Consultants on the behalf of the two Authorities into establishing the BPEO for waste management and planning. These conclusions include the results of a joint public consultation exercise undertaken in conjunction with Worcestershire County Council. The conclusions of these studies have subsequently been considered by the Cabinets of both Councils and now form a basis for future waste planning.

The recommendations approved by Cabinet on the 10th July 2003 are:

That :

• the Best Practicable Environmental Option (BPEO) Technical Report be endorsed as the basis for preparing policies and proposals in the Unitary Development Plan;
• the BPEO for Municipal Solid Waste be based on a minimum 33% recycling/ composting and a maximum of 22% landfilling with any balance required being managed through a form of thermal treatment;
• the BPEO for Commercial and Industrial Waste be based on reducing landfill to 23%, increasing recycling to 73% and 4% dealt with by existing thermal treatment;
• the BPEO for construction and demolition wastes be based on reducing landfill to 24% and recycling increased to 76%;
• the Unitary Development Plan will contain policies to guide the identification and siting of additional waste management facilities (including, as appropriate, materials reclamation, composting and thermal facilities);
• an element of flexibility be retained when considering applications for waste management facilities, but that processes or technologies put forward as an alternative to those which comprise the BPEO for a particular waste stream will have to clearly demonstrate how the impact of that process or technology will be equal to or not significantly greater than those which have been modelled for the agreed BPEO; and
• pending the adoption of the Unitary Development Plan, waste planning applications be determined in the context of the Hereford and Worcester County Structure Plan 1986 – 2001 and the Waste BPEO.

The next steps

The recommendations set out above, where appropriate, formed the basis for the changed policies and proposals set out in the Revised Deposit Unitary Development Plan which was placed on deposit for further public consultation in Spring 2004.

• See the resources box below for a link to download 'Assessment of BPEO for Waste Arising in Herefordshire and Worcestershire'.
• See the resources box below for a link to download the technical appendix.
• See the resources box below for a link to download the 'Report of Stakeholders Consultation'.
• See the resources box below for a link to download 'Planning for Waste Briefing Paper'