TRANSPORT AND TECHNICAL SERVICES
WARWICK FARM PUBLIC GREEN WASTE Reception
Purpose of the Report
The report explains the requirement for a Planning Application for a temporary (3 years) public green waste reception facility at Warwick Farm.
Background
In August 2008, the previous Minister for Transport and Technical Services instructed the Department to consider alternative interim public green waste reception sites. Of the four sites identified in the Green Waste site evaluation process ( MD-T-2007-0113 refers) , Warwick Farm was preferred by the then Minister as offering a central location and probable least investment cost for establishment. This preference was subsequently formalised within MD-TTS-2009-0004 of 16th January 2009.
In September 2008, the Director of Property Holdings indicated that any interim public green waste site at Warwick Farm could only be considered for a three-year period, due to the need to retain flexibility for land-use during the development of the revised Island Plan.
The need to relocate the current public green waste facility from the middle of January 2009 meant that there was a need for a temporary green waste operation at Bellozanne until the proposed Warwick Farm planning process can be determined. The Bellozanne Valley Gate 15 site is not sufficient to manage all of the public green waste in an acceptable way without further modification.
Feasibility designs were developed by the Waste Strategy Team’s technical adviser between September and October 2008 to identify a solution that could be modified in future to create a permanent Re-use and Recycling Facility if appropriate. However, no site with such potential could be developed within the budget available for the works.
Therefore a minimised design has been developed by the Waste Strategy Team, effectively to replicate the public green waste reception facilities currently offered at La Collette at Warwick Farm.
The design involves removal and replacement of poly-tunnels currently used by the Department’s Parks and Gardens service and the creation of a low-grade access to a reception slab, where the public would deposit their waste into collection bins. These bins will be collected periodically by collection vehicles and transferred to La Collette for subsequent composting. No shredding or treatment of waste would be undertaken on site and all collected waste would be removed at the end of each operational day. The site would be landscaped to minimise visual intrusion. Containment in collection bins would minimise any dust, noise or odour impacts.
A traffic assessment was carried out as part of the planning application design statement, in February 2009 to determine the impact on traffic routes to and from Warwick Farm. This assessment concludes the traffic impact of the proposed site is not considered significant.
A waste management working plan has also been developed for submission with the planning application. This would be formally submitted as a waste management licence application if planning permission were to be granted.
A consultation with local residents about the proposals was held in December 2008.
Assuming an application was submitted in March 2009, the earliest an approval would be likely to be granted would be June 2009. Construction of the facility would take a minimum of 6 weeks meaning the earliest that the facility could be available for operation is August 2009.
The Minister is recommended to agree the planning application for an interim public green waste reception facility at the Warwick Farm site.
Resource Implications
The P73/2008 approved budget for the Energy from Waste Project included £100,000 for developing an interim Public Green Waste Facility at Gate 15 Bellozanne Valley. Following the Minister’s decision to prefer Warwick Farm as an interim public green waste reception facility, consideration was given as to which capital budgets could be employed to do so as the allocated £100,000 would be insufficient for this site.
The only potential budget was the £220,000 of works identified within the Energy from Waste enabling works budget for Commercial Green Waste reception. It was the case that this cost would have had to be found from the enclosed compost facility budget in the event that the chosen location was not La Collette and so this element of funding could be used to support the cost of the relocated interim public green waste reception site giving a total budget of £320,000 minus the cost of establishing the temporary facility at Bellozanne Gate 15 which was approximately £ 55,000
To minimise revenue implications of operating this additional collection site, it is proposed to employ staff from the commercial green waste reception and the temporary Bellozanne site at busy weekend periods. This means that the commercial green waste operation can no longer be operated on Saturdays.
The revenue implications of operating Warwick Farm and Gate 15 Bellozanne Valley are similar involving approximately £97,000 for staff, £22,000 for non-staff costs and £52,000 for leasing costs of vehicles giving a total of approximately £170,000 subject to a review of efficiencies.
It is proposed that the costs required to operate these sites be met from the £500,000 allocated to TTS from the initial tranche of money as a pre-cursor for Environmental Taxes for use in 2009 as agreed in the States as part of the 2009 Business Plan.
Recommendations
The Minister for Transport and Technical Services is recommended to agree:
1) The progression as quickly as possible of a planning application for the development of a public green waste reception site at Warwick Farm
2) The operation of the public green waste reception site 6½ days per week
Reason(s) for Decision
To move the domestic green waste reception away from Bellozanne Valley to a more suitable temporary location, at Warwick Farm, until a permanent site is found
Actions Required
The Director of Waste Strategy Projects is to progress the planning application for the interim public green waste reception facility at Warwick Farm
Written by: | Paul Clements – Trainee Project Manager, Waste Strategy Projects |
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Approved by: | Will Gardiner - Director of Waste Strategy Projects |
Appendix 1 – Planning Application Design Statement
Appendix 2 – Waste Management Working Plan
39/8/6
19 March 2009