Issue details

To seek approval to the redevelopment of Sittingbourne Household Waste and Recycling Centre Transfer Station and the allocation of necessary funds to that end.

Kent County Council, as the Waste Disposal Authority (WDA), owns the Waste Transfer Station (WTS) and co-located Household Waste Recycling Centre (HWRC) in Gas Road, Sittingbourne. This is a strategic waste management facility providing the primary disposal point for a Waste Collection Authority’s (WCA) kerbside collected residual waste, dry recyclate and food waste. In this instance the primary WCA is Swale Borough Council. The facility also provides a HWRC service for the residents of Sittingbourne and the surrounding areas. Trade and business wastes are also accepted on a commercial basis.  The throughput for the facility in 2013/14 was 65,583 tonnes.

The facility is approaching the end of its designed life expectancy and is consequentially considered no longer “fit for purpose”, in particular in relation to safety considerations concerning the deposit of multiple waste streams.

Financial Implications: This is a capital project identified in Waste Management’s operating plans as a priority for 2014 -2016 (subject to obtaining Planning Approval and a variation to the Environmental Permit). This project is to maintain service continuity rather than reduce budget, however, the proposed investment in the site will provide additional capacity and future-proofing, and reduce short – medium term maintenance costs compared to the existing facility. By renewing the site, annual maintenance (revenue) costs can be avoided, estimated at £50k per annum.

The Capital allocation remaining on the scheme is £3.38m, for which this proposed decision seeks permission to expend. Whilst this sum is the maximum cost of the redevelopment of this site, the Waste Management team shall be actively exploring innovative alternative options which seek to reduce overall capital expenditure through working in partnership with stakeholders in the public and commercial sectors.

 Legal Implications: The County Council is the Statutory “Waste Disposal Authority” (WDA) and is responsible for providing places for the “Waste Collection Authorities” (WCAs, i.e. districts / borough councils) to deposit their collected waste.  The WDA is also obliged to provide places for householders to deposit their waste.  The former is typically a “Waste Transfer Station”, and the latter a “Household Waste Recycling Centre”.  This project is to deliver both of these facilities either in a single, or very proximate, location(s), and to offer sufficient flexibility and operability for the next 15 years. New statutory waste regulations, which take effect from January 2015, require that municipal waste is separated into a variety of fractions, and thus any municipal waste transfer station must be capable of enabling such separation in a safe and effective manner.

The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1972 requires that the operation of such a site is conducted using safe working practices.

Equality Implications:An EqIA has been undertaken and will be provided with the September Cabinet Committee report.

The project seeks to put the customer at the heart of KCC’s statutory Waste Disposal Authority (WDA) activities, and to maintain / improve the County Council’s image and reputation.