Agenda item

Resolved:

 

To adopt Cyngor Gwynedd's Waste and Recycling Strategy 2025–2030 as the strategic document setting out the Council's direction, vision and priorities for waste and recycling over the next five years.

 

To approve the principle of using Extended Producer Responsibility Funding (EPR) as the main source of funding to support and enable the implementation of the Strategy's priorities, including plans to increase recycling, improve services, maintain existing infrastructure and invest in future infrastructure.

 

To approve the strategic direction for the use of EPR funding to:

• manage the service's direct financial risks by creating "just in case" financial provision, such as dealing with overspending on service delivery where there is no alternative approach, reducing the risk of penalties for failing to meet recycling targets and preparing for Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) costs.

· provide a sound financial basis for the implementation of the projects set out in the Strategy, including the steps to reach the 70% recycling target and the short-term investments needed for upgrades.

· establish a Co-Funding Fund to support significant development at future sites in Caernarfon and Harlech.

 

Note that further decisions would be required on some individual operational elements of the Strategy and the use of the EPR funding, but that adopting the Strategy and approving the EPR use direction provided a policy framework and the financial foundation to move forward with the work programme.

 

Note that the Council would need to consider all possible sources of funding when setting the revenue budget for 2027/28 and subsequent years and that the possibility of having to revisit the above decisions could not be ruled out if an element of the EPR funding needed to be diverted in order to be able to set an equal budget.

 

The report was submitted by Cllr Craig ab Iago.

 

DECISION

 

Resolved:

To adopt Cyngor Gwynedd's Waste and Recycling Strategy 2025–2030 as the strategic document setting out the Council's direction, vision and priorities for waste and recycling over the next five years.

 

To approve the principle of using Extended Producer Responsibility Funding (EPR) as the main source of funding to support and enable the implementation of the Strategy's priorities, including plans to increase recycling, improve services, maintain existing infrastructure and invest in future infrastructure.

 

To approve the strategic direction for the use of EPR funding to:

· manage the service's direct financial risks by creating "just in case" financial provision, such as dealing with overspending on service delivery where there is no alternative approach, reducing the risk of penalties for failing to meet recycling targets and preparing for Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) costs.

· provide a sound financial basis for the implementation of the schemes set out in the Strategy, including the steps to reach the 70% recycling target and the short-term investments needed for upgrades.

· establish a Co-funding Fund to support significant development at future sites in Caernarfon and Harlech.

 

To note that further decisions will be required on some individual operational elements of the Strategy and the use of the EPR funding, but that adopting the Strategy and approving the EPR use direction provided a policy framework and the financial foundation to move forward with the work programme.

 

To note that the Council will need to consider all possible sources of funding when setting the revenue budget for 2027/28 and subsequent years and that the possibility of having to revisit the above decisions cannot be ruled out if an element of the EPR funding needs to be diverted in order to be able to set a balanced budget.

 

 

DISCUSSION

 

It was highlighted that this was the first Waste Strategy that the Council had developed, and added that it set a clear direction for the Council's handling of the topic of waste.

Reference was made to the Welsh Government's target of recycling 70% of the County's waste, and the Cabinet Member stated that he would like to see the County recycle 100% of its waste as well as trying to reduce the amount of waste generated here. Although the Council had no control over the amount of waste generated in the County, it was stated that much more needed to be done than just recycling. The need to strengthen our circular economy, see waste as a resource and also focus on the re-use element was suggested.

 

Some of those reasons were put forward behind attempting to introduce such a Strategy in the County, noting that the service faced a variety of challenges. Reference was made to the statutory target to recycle 70% of the County's waste, explaining that Gwynedd was not currently meeting this target. The risk of receiving a significant financial penalty was then mentioned if the Council did not meet this target, adding that there was a risk of carbon-related costs on the horizon as well. The Strategy's attempt to modernise the service was explained and its wider vision was then clarified. The six main priorities of the Strategy were identified, namely:

·       Communication and Engagement,

·       Reduce, Re-use and Repair,

·       Increase Recycling,

·       Providing a High-quality Service,

·       Achieving Net Zero,

·       Infrastructure that is Fit for the Future 

 

It was stated that EPR funding was a new funding stream based on the principle that the "polluter pays" the cost of managing the packaging waste they create. It was noted that the Council had received a significant amount of EPR funding last year and that an increase in this figure was forecast for this year. It was highlighted that there was an intention to use this funding in a balanced way, as recommended in the Report. It was said that the Strategy alone was not enough, and that resources were needed to bring about change.

The support received for the Strategy in the public consultation held in 2025 was discussed. It was recognised that some concerns had been raised, relating to the need to ensure that the service was fair and accessible to all.

 

Observations arising from the discussion:

·       The Strategy was welcomed and its importance was emphasised.

·       The high cost of the service was noticed, and it was asked what caused the service to be more expensive than services within other counties. In response, it was confirmed that the latest report from the Welsh Local Government Association indicated that the Council was going in the right direction in terms of reducing this cost. Reference was made to geographical factors affecting these costs in Gwynedd, highlighting the rural geography of the County compared to other counties.

·       Pride was expressed for the attention given to people with dementia, the elderly, and disabled people, as well as the help available to support them. Concerns were raised about the use of recycling sacks rather than carts, anticipating an increase in demand for back-door collections as the sacks were harder to move.

·       An update was provided on the recycling sack pilot that was scheduled to take place in another area. It was noted that it would not be mandatory to use a sack, it was highlighted that these sacks were cheaper than the cart, held more, and had not blown away in the previous pilot.

·       In response to a question about the Council's recycling performance over the 2025/26 period, it was confirmed that the Department currently had draft figures. It was reported that Natural Resources Wales had asked all Councils to reconsider their approach to wood recycling, and this had consequently had a negative impact on local authority recycling figures across Wales.

·       In relation to the Reduce, Re-use and Repair priority, it was explained that the Council would rely on community enterprises, etc. to assist with this work. It was added that there were plans to open a re-use shop at a recycling centre in September for local people, and that guidance would be available for community enterprises to help deliver the Strategy.

When discussing a recent conference attended by the Cabinet Member for Environment, rental models for bodies such as the Council were mentioned, in an attempt to promote re-use rather than buying new.