"This level of support for our proposals is very welcome. The Government is determined to drive down waste production and increase recycling and re-use. It is very good to have the backing of the industry as we move towards new Regulations"
Joan Ruddock, Minister for Waste
Responses published yesterday to a UK Government consultation show that 75 per cent of respondents back legally binding Site Waste Management Plans (SWMPs). The aim of the plans is to reduce illegal waste disposal, improve efficiency and cut the 109m tonnes of waste produced annually on construction sites in England and Wales.
The consultation responses will be taken into account as Defra prepares new regulations relating to waste management in the construction industry.
An existing voluntary code was developed by the former Department of Trade and Industry and the consultation proposals build on this.
The proposals are linked to the Defra review of the waste duty of care, and the waste carriers and brokers regime, and aim to ensure that the illegal disposal of construction, demolition and excavation waste is tackled at all levels within the industry.
Joan Ruddock, Minister for Waste
The UK's construction output is the second largest in the EU. The industry uses 400m tonnes of solid materials every year, but only two thirds of this is added to the building stock.
SWMPs
SWMPs aim to reduce the quantity of materials used and to encourage reuse and recycling, as well as environmentally sustainable disposal where necessary. Around 13 per cent of all the solid materials delivered to construction sites goes unused, and up to one third ends up in landfill.
The plans would require an assessment of the waste to be produced on a construction site and detail how it would be reused, disposed of, or recycled.
Updating of the plans during construction operations is important and the plans would be updated to record what actually happens to the waste including the disposal of materials that cannot be reused or recycled. This audit trail would reduce the potential for fly-tipping and increase the accountability of contractors. They should also help the construction industry to get maximum value out of its waste and make better use of resources.
In addition to whether the SWMPs should be statutory or voluntary the consultation included, the minimum level at which a project should require a SWMP, the level of detail they should offer, and how the SWMP can improve resource efficiency.
Responses were mixed on the criteria and the threshold to be used in setting minimum requirements for SWMPs, though project value was felt to be the most practical approach to setting criteria. Defra says that it will now do further analysis of the costs and benefits for different types of construction activity to inform decision-making on the threshold level.
The responses also stressed the need for effective enforcement, publicity and training, and the need for support for the SME sector.
Once the regulations are finalised, Defra will produce guidance to help businesses prepare for and implement them.
The Minister for Waste, Joan Ruddock, said:
"This level of support for our proposals is very welcome. The Government is determined to drive down waste production and increase recycling and re-use. It is very good to have the backing of the industry as we move towards new Regulations."