Overspend on alternate weekly bin collection pilot scheme

Date published: 18 March 2007

The pilot scheme for the alternate weekly bin collection in the Pennines Township has cost Rochdale Council far more than was originally estimated.

There has been an "overspend" of £109,000 on the pilot scheme in the one township where the scheme has been tried.

Councillor Susan Emmott says: "This completely negates claims by Councillor Wera Hobhouse that not moving to her alternate weekly collection will cost council taxpayers more money.

"An overspend is 'council speak' for a financial loss and this is yet another reason why I question the viability of the alternate weekly collection."

A council report to the Cabinet shows the following breakdown of losses in the Pennines Alternate Weekly Collection pilot scheme:

• £26,000 extra on salaries
• £20,000 extra on bags and bins
• £44,000 extra on hiring vehicles
• £19,000 extra on fuel costs
  
  
• £109,000 in total

Councillor Susan Emmott added: "Remember, this is only in one quarter of the borough, if there is a loss of £109,000 there, then we are looking at a possible loss of £436,000 once the alternate weekly collection is imposed on the rest of the borough.

"Wera Hobhouse has called the Pennines pilot scheme a success. I don’t see how an overspend of £109,000 can be called a success by anyone’s yardstick.

"In addition, there are still many problems with flimsy waste bags that burst open and with rubbish blowing around people’s gardens and down streets in the pilot scheme.

"Not only are residents receiving a reduced bin collection service with no reduction in their Council Tax, but also the scheme is going to end up costing them more. This overspend will have to be covered and that will be from council taxpayers pockets.

"Rochdale Council really does have to go back to the drawing board and look at other ways to increase its recycling rates and to still give residents a bin collection service that is both satisfactory and cost effective."

Councillor Hobhouse responded by saying: "I don't know what report of an overspend to the Cabinet Councillor Emmott is talking about.  There was no report of an overspend on Managed Weekly Collections. I get regular updates on the budget position and I haven't been made aware of any overspend. As Cabinet member I would be the first to know.
 
"Of course we need to spend some money to introduce the scheme in the first place - like buying the bins and hiring crews to put them out - but these are 'one off' costs, which are tiny compared to the savings we are achieving from sending less waste to landfill.
 
"Rochdale Borough spent a massive £12 million pounds last year to dispose of household waste. £4.5 mill is the cost of the Council's collection service and £7.5 million is the levy to the Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority for landfill etc.
 
"If we don't roll out the Managed Weekly Collections across the Borough this levy is estimated to increase by 10% - that's £750,000 for this coming year. That's the ever increasing cost of landfill charges. This year we are paying £21 per tonne, from April it will be £25 per tonne and the charge will continue to increase by £3 year on year. Once Landfill Allowance Penalties kick in at £150 per tonne the extra costs to the Council will increase to several million.
 
"How disappointing to read Labour Councillors spreading totally misleading information - just to discourage residents to recycle."