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Waverley Borough Council Committee System - Committee Document

Meeting of the Executive held on 27/03/2007
Waste Management and Climate Change Special Interest Group


APPENDIX V
Waverley Borough Council

EXECUTIVE - 27TH MARCH 2007

WASTE MANAGEMENT AND CLIMATE CHANGE SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP
27TH MARCH 2007

Title:
WASTE MANAGEMENT AND CLIMATE CHANGE SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP
[Wards Affected: All]


Summary and purpose

This report summarises current issues in relation to the implementation of the revised system of refuse and recycling collections in Waverley. It also introduces Climate Change as a significant matter for consideration by the Special Interest Group.

Environmental Implications:

The Council’s waste management service arguably has the greatest direct environmental impact of all its services. The overarching aims are to provide a service which accords with both the National Waste Hierarchy and the Surrey Joint Municipal Waste Management Strategy. Both of these have been agreed and adopted by Waverley. Both place reduction and reuse as the most important of our waste management activities, and both place disposal by landfill as a final resort.

Amongst the measurable effects of Waverley’s many years of developing an environmentally driven approach to delivering its waste collection services, are a reduced dependency on landfill and increased recycling. Waverley will meet its statutory targets this year. However, further challenges lie ahead with yet higher targets.

Climate Change is a global issue with manifold environmental implications. In order to limit the effects of climate change, Councils need to take action both to reduce emissions that they themselves cause as well as those produced by their communities. Councils should also be taking action to prepare for the impacts of climate change.

Resource and Legal Implications

There are no legal implications directly associated with this report.

The 2006-07 capital programme includes £80,000 for improvements to the bring site facilities around the Borough. Whilst work is underway on this project, if any of this budget remains unspent at 31st March 2007, a carry forward request will be made.

The 2007/08 revenue budget includes a sum of £100,000 to develop the recycling and waste collection service. When this budget was agreed, the Council referred to the list of twelve areas that had previously been considered by the SIG in November 2006. Several of these items have financial implications and would be a call on the £100,000 if it were agreed to implement them. Whilst this list overlaps with some of the items in this report, there are some new areas now emerging that also have financial implications and Members will need to consider the value and timing of any associated costs. Members are also reminded that the Saturday static garden waste collection points at Godalming and Haslemere are funded until 31st March, and continuing this service will require approval for additional budget provision in 2007-08 totalling £30,000 for the two sites, to be met from the £100,000 sum.

These two sites have been established because of a lack of Civic Amenity Site provision in Godalming and Haslemere, and without undermining the effectiveness of the subscription service. It should be noted that a similar additional financial provision of £15,000 per site per year if further static garden waste collection points were to be established in other locations, say in the areas of Farnham and Cranleigh respectively.

Any changes to the current service from Veolia Environmental Services may require variations to the contract that could have resource implications.

Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant

Defra has awarded a pooled Waste Performance & Efficiency Grant (Waste PEG) to Surrey’s Waste Collection Authorities & the County Council in 2007/08 to assist in the delivery of the Surrey Joint Municipal Waste Management Strategy. The Districts and SCC are separately and collectively responsible for implementing the strategy and a JMWMS Members’ Consultative Board oversees this. This body is now also responsible for overseeing expenditure of the Waste PEG through a Surrey Local Area Agreement.

In previous years the Waste PEG has been awarded on an individual basis to each Council and been available, split equally between capital and revenue expenditure. In Waverley’s case we could have anticipated a total grant sum of £112,000 for 2007/08.

In order to aid the shift from individual Council expenditure to pooled expenditure, transitional arrangements have been agreed for 2007/08, whereby 50% of each Council’s anticipated Waste PEG is passported directly back to them. This is on the proviso that the 50% is spent on individual activities to implement the JMWMS in each Council area. Therefore in Waverley’s case £56,000 has been requested to support such expenditure in 2007/08. It is expected that the JMWMS Members’ Consultative Board will approve this request at their next meeting on 28th March 2007.

The remaining pooled 2007/08 Waste PEG resources have been identified by the Members’ Consultative Board for expenditure on joint and pilot projects. More details about these will become available at their meeting on 28th March.

Background

1. At the last meeting of the Executive it was agreed that the role of the Waste Management Special Interest Group should be expanded to include climate change considerations. Revised terms of reference were approved which are set out in the SIG agenda.

2. The matter of the title of the Special Interest Group was considered at the meeting held on 27th February and Members considered, and the Environment Portfolio Holder agreed, that it would be more appropriate if the SIG was entitled the “Waste Management and Climate Change Special Interest Group”. This is because of the continuing huge importance of waste management in the climate change agenda.

3. Under the circumstances that this is the first meeting of the SIG operating under the new terms of reference, the Portfolio Holder and your officers considered it appropriate to set-out an action plan of issues which the SIG might consider in its first year. These are divided into two. First, those that relate to waste management. And secondly, those which relate to the broader climate change agenda.

4. Members of the SIG are asked to comment on the proposed workload action plan, express their views about any perceived priority areas of work and any additional areas of work they would wish to see receive the attentions of the SIG.

Waste Management Related Issues Enhancing the Green Waste Service 5. The Council has resolved to include provision in the approved 2007/2008 revenue budget to fund the appointment of an officer to develop the Green Waste Service. This is the service which provides two 90 litre woven green polypropylene bags for £40 per annum (four for £60), discounted by 50% for those in receipt of statutory means tested benefits, for the fortnightly removal of green garden waste for composting. The current uptake is approximately 3,000 households, with renewals for the second year of operation currently underway. The additional staffing resource should be able to expand this significantly and the proposed target is 6,000 households within a year from April 2007. This is an ambitious target, where the actual number of subscribers is likely to be sensitive to the level of charge. 6. This is also the target level for the contractor’s financial model for waste collection in Waverley. The current level of 3,000 subscribers means one collection vehicle and its crew are kept fully occupied. Therefore, from the contractor’s perspective, maximum efficiency is reached at whole multiples of this number. Possibilities for discounting reducing the subscription charge for the Green Waste Service 7. Some Members have expressed the view that the current charges for the Green Waste Service, outlined above, may be an impediment for maximising participation in the scheme, and therefore not maximising recycling of green waste. The current rate is £5 per annum less than the amount tendered by our contractor for providing a green waste service per household and per annum. The Council has resolved to cover financially this reduction as well as the discount to benefits recipients. Whereas there is to be no increase in charge to service users from 2006/07 to 2007/08 the contractor will be increasing his charge per customer to Waverley in line with the annual contract inflation uplift meaning that the subsidy level will be approximately £7 per annum for the forthcoming year. Members are reminded that, whilst the green waste collection service offers a good alternative to householders, Waverley’s primary focus for garden waste is to encourage composting. 8. Clearly it is a matter for the Council’s discretion to consider further reductions or concessions and a matter for our judgement to consider the impact of any further reductions both on the weight of green waste presented for collection (by expanding participation) and on the budget. 9. Dealing with the latter, and presuming success in hitting the revised target for participation, the full year effect of a further discount reduction in the charge of £10 per customer to £30of £10 there would be a net cost of £102,000 if there were to be 6,000 households subscribers. maximum reduction in income of £75,000. This could be contained, were Members so minded, in the additional approved revenue provision of £100,000 for 2007/08 but as the report indicates earlier, there also a number of other potential projects with financial implications that would need to be met from this budget.
10. Members are asked to express their views in relation to potential reductions in the subscription charge for the Green Waste Service. Lifting/trolley mechanisms for recycling boxes 11. Difficulties with lifting laden paper and glass boxes are few but regularly expressed. Earlier attempts to find a solution have not been productive either because of price, or market capacity or indeed functionality. A recent visit to Reigate and Banstead Borough Council to talk about our system of waste management enabled Waverley to see their system for trolleying boxes like ours. Relatively inexpensive at £9.95 + VAT wholesale, this simple ingenious device attaches under the rim of the box, lifts it easily and transports the box with little effort and no lifting. 12. Again, were Members so minded, one clear possibility of offering help for those who express a concern about lifting boxes, is for Waverley to keep a stock of these trolleys and to make them available to our residents at a cost plus VAT, plus delivery to their home. For less than £15 this could be an attractive option to challenged residents. However, officers do have health and safety concerns around the Council supplying lifting equipment to the general public. The Council do continue to offer the assisted collection service through the contractor. 13. Members are asked to comment on this proposal. A trolley will be available for inspection at the SIG meeting and members of the Executive received a demonstration at its last meeting. Enhanced bring sites: an update report 14. Officers will report on recent work undertaken at the Council’s bring sites in order to bring about an improvement, both in terms of what the sites look like in relation to tidiness and also in terms of upgrading and repainting the containers for recyclables, expanding the range of recyclables and number of bring sites. Bio-diesel for refuse freighters 15. Bio-diesel is primarily manufactured from pre-used vegetable oils. Because it is in effect a sustainable source fuel rather than a fossil fuel it has an environmental appeal. Officers will need to develop with our contractors, costed options for a switch to this fuel for Members consideration. Possible joint venture for disposal of kitchen waste 16. Perhaps the largest limiting factor to launching a kitchen waste collection service is the lack of local facilities for dealing with kitchen waste. This is ordinarily an in-vessel composter in order to satisfy the requirements of the Animal Bi-products Regulations. The nearest are Dorset and Buckinghamshire. The prospect of being able to tie-up, perhaps with a couple of other districts, to produce a jointly available facility, has obvious attractions. Officers will need to work-up a possible scheme and come back to Members with costed proposals. 17. It is expected that the results of the forthcoming trial of kitchen food waste collections in three small areas of three Surrey Waste Collection Authorities will be available to inform about the feasibility, longer term sustainability and costs of operating a full-scale service. Batteries Collection Service 18. Perhaps the most toxic component of the domestic waste stream is electrical equipment batteries. Nickel and Cadmium are the poisonous metals often present. Up until recently, the best practicable environmental option was to include batteries within domestic waste. However, some 20,000 tonnes are being thrown away in the UK every year, with a recycling rate of less than 1%. 19. Separation is timetabled because of an EU directive requiring manufacturers and importers fund collections and recycling for spent batteries. The first collection targets for portable batteries are to be achieved in 2012, but there are reprocessing targets for collected batteries from 2010. Officers will need to work-up costed proposals for introducing a battery collection and return scheme for Members to consider in due course. Issues Previously Raised 20. The Waste Management SIG has previously considered a range of issues that arose from questions raised by the Environment and Leisure Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 31st October 2006. These issue are contained again at Annexe 1 to this report for completeness should this Committee wish to consider any of them further at this meeting. Recent Research into Possible Adverse Health Effects of AWC 21. On 16th March 2007, Defra published research into the possible adverse health effects of alternate weekly collections. A copy of the Defra website news-page is attached at Annexe 2 to this report. 22. The following is taken from the published report: · Keep the waste containers clean, for example by washing and disinfection when needed · Keep moisture in waste containers to a minimum · Not shredding or chopping kitchen waste before disposal – it is better to put waste into the bin in larger pieces · Keep the waste container outdoors and out of direct sunlight where possible · Avoid giving shelter opportunities for rodents · Keep all waste tightly wrapped or in containers · Place newspaper in the base of the green waste bin · Ensure that containers holding kitchen wastes are kept closed. It is best not to compost cooked food, dairy products, meat, fish or bones at home, because these wastes are more likely to attract rodents · Garden waste compost heaps or bins should be sited away from walls and fences to avoid providing a sheltered route for rodents Conclusion 23. The research indicates that no significant adverse health effects are likely to be caused by alternate weekly waste collections of residual and biodegradable waste. Provided common-sense steps such as those listed above are taken, any annoyance issues (e.g. due to odours or flies) can also be controlled.” Climate Change Related Issues

‘An Inconvenient Truth’ by Al Gore: proposals for screening and distributing the book 24. Now a major motion picture film, this addresses from a basis of scientific evidence the impact of CO2 on global warming and the global consequences of climate change. Members may wish to agree arrangements for a showing of the film and comment on a proposal to make copies of the book available to members of the SIG. Climate Change Action Plan Update 25. The Council agreed a Climate Change Action Plan in July 2006. Since that time ECSC have been commissioned, with the support of a grant from the Carbon Trust, to undertake a base level survey of Waverley’s energy consumption and related data. The results from this are imminent and will be reported when available to this or a future meeting of the SIG. Equally important will be the need to discuss and agree times for a twice-annual reporting of the Climate Change Action Plan so that progress can be monitored and, where necessary, management action precipitated. Possibilities for a bio-mass boiler for Waverley with a CHP unit providing heating, cooling and light 26. Officers will report on the progress of a feasibility study commissioned to examine the practicalities of introducing a bio-mass boiler into the municipal offices at the Burys.

The 2016 target for zero carbon homes 27. Houses are without doubt the single major pollutant source for global warming. Waverley owns houses and also has a statutory duty to encourage home energy conservation. Also the Council is involved through its Building Control and Planning processes in improving the carbon performance of new dwellings and other buildings. The bigger challenge and potentially greater benefit flows from improving the existing stock of buildings in the Borough. This will require a joint effort with other partners and the Government’s active support. Encouragement and Support for Outside Bodies 28. At its meeting on 13th March 2007, the Environment and Leisure Overview and Scrutiny Committee noted the application made by Bramley Parish Council to Waverley’s Community Partnership Fund for £9,000 towards the overall cost of £36,750 to replace 35 street lights that are more than 40 years old. Whilst the application was not recommended for approval because the fund criteria does not support projects that do not fall within Waverley’s area of responsibility, it was requested that this SIG examine this matter. The new system would be more energy efficient and environmentally friendly than the old one. 29. Whilst more information would be needed to assess the technical aspects of this, Members may have initial views about whether this matter should be progressed. Electric cars and car parks 30. Electric cars and hybrid cars present a more acceptable sustainable future than cars powered by fossil fuels. As the owner of car parks across the Borough, Members may wish to consider a concessionary approach to electric and hybrid cars in relation to charges for parking with a view to encouraging a greater number of drivers to make the switch. This will need to have regard to the effects on car park income which forms a significant part of the Council’s total income. Costed proposals will be presented in due course. Climate Change Bill 31. The Government published its draft Climate Change Bill on 13th March in which it is proposed that a framework for reducing carbon dioxide will be established through the following four key elements: Suggested Climate Change Review and Investigation Process

32. An outline review and investigation process is attached as Annexe 3 to this report. Members are asked to comment on this as a way of undertaking the Climate Change element of their work. 33. The Environment Portfolio Holder will present any comments from the SIG on the details set out in this report to the Executive at its meeting later in the day. Recommendation

It is recommended that:

1. Officers be requested to prepare such further information as may be needed to prioritise further improvements to the Council’s Waste Management Service for the forthcoming year;

2. the contents of this report in relation to updated information about the implementation of the Alternate Weekly Collection Service be noted;

3. the review process as set out in Annexe 3 to the report be agreed as a way of conducting the Climate Change element of the work of the SIG;

4. an opportunity be given for all Members of the Council to view “An Inconvenient Truth”.

Background Papers (DoEL)

There are no background papers (as defined by Section 100D(5) of the Local Government Act 1972) relating to this report.

CONTACT OFFICERS:

Name: Peter Maudsley Telephone: 01483 523398
E-mail: pmaudsley@waverley.gov.uk

Martin Shorten Telephone: 01483 523434
E-mail: mshorten@waverley.gov.uk

Fotini Kallipoliti Telephone: 01483 523448
E-mail: fkallipoliti@waverley.gov.uk


COMMS/EXEC/2006-07/339

ANNEXE 1
Matters Considered by the Waste Management SIG at its Meeting on 28th November 2006
Cardboard

1. At the time of writing this report, officers have asked Veolia Environmental Services for proposals and fee bids either to work in parallel with Grundons to increase the capacity or servicing frequency of our cardboard collection facilities at bring sites, or to assume responsibility for the whole of the cardboard collection facility at bring sites. Your officers have also asked for proposals about extending this to an additional range of bring sites. The current distribution of cardboard collection facilities at bring sites is shown at Annexe 2 to this report. Members will also recollect initial approval for £80,000 in the 2007/08 draft capital programme which will be used, at least in part, for upgrading the appearance of bring sites including the cardboard collection containers.
2. At the previous meeting of the Special Interest Group and as reported at the last meeting of the Environment and Leisure Overview and Scrutiny Committee, the Special Interest Group has agreed to reconsider this matter six months after the full introduction of alternate weekly collection, i.e. after May 2007. For the elucidation of Members, Annexe 3 contains the previously distributed financial analysis of the consequences of reducing the concession to householders of 5 persons and above. Depending on the take up and size of replacement bin, this could involve a one-off cost in the range of £36,000 to £91,000. This amount would reduce if an initial charge were made to the householder. In addition, it is estimated that ongoing costs in the range of £94,000 to £120,000 per annum, depending on the size of replacement bin, could be incurred.

3. In Waverley, three types of plastic are collected. These are:

4. The current policy is to restrict our collection to plastic bottles only and this policy therefore restricts the types of plastic to those described above. Your officers have had recent negotiations with Surrey Waste Management about the possibility of collecting general mixed plastics, although early indications are that this will not be possible, because of the restricted markets for plastic reprocessing and the current sorting arrangements which Surrey Waste Management undertake at Charlton Lane in Sunbury. Your officers will also review the options for trading plastics with other intermediaries. However, this is also likely to prove difficult because of the requirement for bulking facilities before the plastics are transported for sorting and processing. Currently we enjoy the ability to use the bulking facilities of the Slyfield Transfer Station, which is occupied by Surrey Waste Management (owned by Surrey County Council).

4. Concern was expressed at the Environment and Leisure Overview and Scrutiny Committee about the current system of recycling cans which does not allow for other pure forms of aluminium to be included in the process, such as aluminium foil and aluminium food trays. Again, your officers are discussing with Surrey Waste Management about whether the scheme could be extended to include not only ferrous and aluminium drinks cans but also other forms of pure aluminium. The initial difficulty may be the separating mechanisms for cans and the requirement for cans only by the end user. This is a combination of an electro-magnet and an eddy-current separator, which may not be suitable for various forms of metal.

5. DTW will be present at the meeting to update Members on the work they have done so far with Waverley in respect of the introduction of the alternate weekly collection service and to inform Members of current projects and the likely direction of public relations during the coming months. This will be the opportunity for Members to ask DTW direct about any issues they wish to raise in respect of the delivery of the public relations campaign.

6. Unfortunately the summer of 2006 was unseasonably hot and certain problems, which may not under ordinary circumstances have occurred, were reported to the team. Perhaps on reflection the largest single problem was the heat itself, which approached 40 degrees centigrade and the ability of the operators to actually continue the service at a time when other Councils abandoned municipal duties during the heat of the day. Veolia continued collections throughout this heat and did all that was humanly possible to ensure as satisfactory an introduction as possible. Of course the other side of the heat issue was the speed with which smells developed, maggots hatched and flies emerged. Your officers remain of the view that these problems can be largely contained by wrapping before inserting food remains into a bin or bag and wherever possible placing the wheel bin somewhere cool and shady or by householders reducing the amount of food waste disposed of.

7. Small dwellings and communal devlopments are a continuing issue, which your officers are working hard to resolve in terms of ensuring that the recycling capacity is maximised. More often than not, this will include one off arrangements to avoid each property having all the attendant containers of the standard recycling system and rather providing communal collection facilities such as shared wheeled bins for recycling.

8. Members have agreed a policy of providing assistance in collecting boxes from an agreed collection point other than from the property under the circumstances of difficulties arising out of topography, geography, physical capacity or infirmity. At present 1,449 of properties are serviced with the provision of this additional facility. At the last Overview and Scrutiny Committee some concern was expressed about whether this facility is known about widely enough and your officers have undertaken to ensure to repeat this possibility in future communications with residents.

9. Members have agreed to provide an elasticated net as a cover to the plastics and cans container. This has the advantage of being a flexible cover, allowing for the irregularities and protrusions of a box full of mixed objects. Members took the view that a lid would be less satisfactory. A net also provides a secure enclosure and prevents potential wind blown plastics from being dispersed in a way that a lid would not. Some concern was expressed about the net allowing access to the contents of the box by young children and domesticated animals possibly causing variously injured fingers and noses. Perhaps in order to overcome this, Members may wish to consider making available, at cost price, a fitted lid to those householders so exercised and who request such. On the other hand, perhaps householders could be advised to manage their waste to reduce these risks.

10. As described above, Waverley will be launching action on its own recycle bring sites. The Community Recycling Sites also known as Civic Amenity Site are managed by and are the responsibility of Surrey County Council as the Waste Disposal Authority. Proposals for their improvement were contained in the Surrey County Council Local Waste Plan proposals, which are now likely to become subject to a public enquiry prior to formal adoption. For ease of reference Annexe 4 of this report contains the appropriate extract relating to the Civic Amenity Sites (CAS).

Residents’ Concerns

11. Members may wish to amplify the issue that was raised at Environment and Leisure Overview and Scrutiny Committee about general residents concerns in relation to alternate weekly collections and may wish to suggest additional means and methods of addressing this. Officers have improved the response time for written and verbal requests for action and assistance. Whereas at one moment in time there was a capacity issue, this has been addressed and arrangements have been put in place to ensure a continued ability for a speedy response to the more detailed, technically orientated type letter, which demands consideration, analysis and research before a response is prepared.


ANNEXE 2


Research Into Possible Adverse Health Impacts From Alternate Weekly Waste Collections.

Copy of defra news story of 16th March 2007, concerning publication of researsh funded by the defra Waste Implementation Programmge about possible Health impacts from Alternate Weekly Collections:


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No adverse health impacts from alternate weekly waste collections

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Research into alternate week waste collection shows there would be no adverse effects on health.
The research, published today (16 March), looked into possible effects of collecting recyclable waste one week and residual waste the next. Areas where recyclables and residual waste are already collected on alternate weeks have seen an increase the amount of recycling achieved.
The report concludes that common sense measures such as keeping waste tightly wrapped and bin lids closed would help combat potential increases in odour, insects or other nuisance.
Councillor Paul Bettison, chairman of the Local Government Association’s Environment Board, said:
"Councils are on the frontline in the fight against climate change and working hard to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill. Authorities introducing alternate bin collections make the decision based on what will work best in their unique local circumstances. Councils bringing in the scheme work with residents to make sure they know about the changes and how to dispose of their waste. As long as people use their bins properly, the system is efficient and hygienic.
"Local authorities are using every tool in their arsenal to make sure that council tax is kept down and the environment is protected. Alternate week collection is one of those tools. It is proven to increase the amount of recycling achieved and reduce the level of waste sent to landfill.”
        Further information
The research was commissioned by South East Waste Advisory Group and funded by Defra’s Waste Implementation Programme. It was carried out by Enviros Consulting Ltd and Cranfield University. See the report on Enviros Consulting's website.
See also the waste and recycling pages on this site.
Page published:16 March 2007
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ANNEXE 3

Waste Management and Climate Change Special Interest Group

Climate Change Review and Investigation Process

1 What are we looking at?

This review will examine:

a. Current scientific thinking on the causes and likely impacts of climate change
b. Where are we now? The Nottingham Declaration and the Waverley Climate Change Action Plan
c. Does this need to be updated? Is it fit for purpose and will it deliver the step change needed
d. How are we monitoring progress and effectiveness of the WBC Climate Change Action Plan
e. What are the effects and implications of the Government’s Climate Change Bill, published in March 2007?
f. The likely impact of climate change on the Borough of Waverley and the timescale for any impact to be felt
g. Current activity being undertaken by Waverley to mitigate and adapt to climate change, including energy use, waste management, planning and building control and transport, as well as any opportunities for the Council to improve in these areas
h. Opportunities for WBC to act as a community leader, encouraging businesses, schools, residents and other community groups to reduce their contribution to CO2 emissions and prepare for the impacts of climate change
i. Whether Environmental Management systems such as ISO 14000 and BS8555 are appropriate mechanisms for adoption by the Council
j. Local authority best practice in the area of climate change action
k. Setting local targets for greenhouse gases (specifically carbon dioxide)

2. What are we not looking at?

a. Wider aspects of sustainability that do not have direct applicability to climate change
b. Issues such as nuclear power or carbon capture
c. Relative merits of and issues surrounding particular technologies

3. Why are we looking at this?

a. Climate change potentially poses a threat to the Council and the community in Waverley
b. We have responsibility for our own contribution to the problem – emissions from Council operations
c. We have a responsibility to promote well-being
d. Climate change action can improve quality of life for residents
e. Sustainable energy and other initiatives present opportunities for new businesses and economic development in the Borough

4. What do we hope to achieve?

We will produce a report including recommendations to enable Waverley to:

a. Further the community’s understanding of the causes of climate change
b. Assess the activity already being undertaken by the Council and partners in mitigating and adapting to climate change
c. Ensure that consideration of climate change is fully integrated into the governance arrangements of Waverley Borough Council and its activities
d. Suggest further activities that could be undertaken to tackle climate change both directly by the Council and in its role as a community leader
e. Raise awareness of climate change, its likely impacts and courses of action that can be taken to address it amongst the wider community
f. Contribute to the development of a ‘next generation’ climate change Action Plan /Strategy for Waverley.

5. What information do we need?

a. The scientific case for Climate Change
b. Desktop study of evidence relating to climate change, backed by interviews with academics and other experts in the field.
c. Current Activity
d. Assessment of activities already undertaken by the Council and partners to mitigate and adapt to climate change.
e. Best Practice
f. Examination of best practice in mitigating and adapting to climate change elsewhere, including reference to Sustainable Energy Beacon winners.
g. Engaging the Wider Community
h. Engage the wider community seeking the views of groups on climate change in general, what they feel could be done to address climate change and feeding-back some of the findings of our review.

6. How will the evidence be gathered?

We will gather information in a number of ways that may include the following:

a. Formal interviews with expert witnesses
b. Informal interviews with relevant individuals
c. Site visits to best practice initiatives
d. Gathering written evidence
e. Desktop examination of statistical information and academic and other research
f. Conferences/seminars/beacon learning events.

7. Potential witnesses and consultations?

These may include:

a. Academics and other experts in the science of climate change
b. Surrey County Council Executive Members
c. WBC and Surrey County Council Officers
d. Neighbouring Councils
e. Town and Parish Councils
f. South East Climate Change Partnership
g. Local interest groups including Local Agenda 21
h. Schools
i. Businesses and business organisations
j. DEFRA
k. SEDA
l. SEERA
m. Energy Saving Trust
n. The Carbon Trust
o. UK Climate Impacts Programme
p. The Local Government Association

8. Timescale

The review will begin in May 2007 and conclude by May 2008. Interim progress reports will be made to both the Executive and to the Environment and Leisure Overview and Scrutiny Committee during this period.