Four of Wales's biggest councils have escaped recycling fines despite failing to hit the Welsh Government’s statutory recycling target of 52 per cent of their waste in 2013/14.

Welsh Minister for Natural Resources Carl Sargeant agreed on 5 June to waive a total of £1.65 million in fines levied against Cardiff City Council, Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council, Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council and Newport City Council on condition that they demonstrate a commitment to improving.

According to information on Cabinet Ministers’ decisions published on the Welsh Government website, Sargeant has agreed to waive the penalties for the shortfalls, as identified by Natural Resources Wales (NRW), the body appointed to monitor recycling targets:

• Cardiff City Council was found to have recovered, recycled or composted 49.67 per cent of its waste, a shortfall of 4,011 tonnes, incurring a potential fine of £802,200.
• Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council recovered, recycled or composted 49.31 per cent, a 2,912 tonne shortfall incurring a potential £582,400 fine.
• Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council recovered, recycled or composted 48.22 per cent, a 1,120 shortfall potentially incurring a £224,000 fine.
• Newport City Council recovered, recycled or composted 51.70 per cent, a 213 tonne shortfall, potentially incurring a £42,600 fine.

Sargeant also agreed to waive fines totaling £181,800 imposed on Cardiff, Merthyr Tydfil, Newport and Flintshire councils for exceeding their 2013/14 allowances for the amount of biodegradable municipal waste that could be sent to landfill.

Conditions attached

The fines were waived on condition of the councils’ full participation in the Collaborative Change Programme (CCP), a project developed by the Welsh Government and the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) that aims to assist local authorities to make required changes to services to ensure that ‘future targets are met in a way that results in efficiencies and cost savings in the long-term’.

Speaking to Resource, A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “Wales is the fourth best country in Europe at recycling and continues to lead the UK with its recycling targets. It’s important, however, that we continue to look for improvement wherever possible and we are working closely with all local authorities in Wales to ensure that best practice is implemented across the board.”

The spokesperson added: “The Natural Resources Minister has made it clear that councils who don’t hit the recycling target will need to demonstrate how they intend to improve and reach future targets or else face penalties. In this instance, he is satisfied that these councils have sufficiently demonstrated this and looks forward to seeing a marked improvement in their future recycling performance.”

Speaking to Wales Online, Cardiff’s Cabinet Member for Environment, Councillor Bob Derbyshire, said he was “very pleased” the fine had been waived, adding: “We have been working closely with Welsh Government to ensure that our recycling services reflect the Welsh Government’s blueprint… “Although fines have not been imposed on this occasion they remain a very real prospect in the future.”

Future targets achievable

Councils face steadily escalating recycling targets meaning Welsh councils will be in line for even bigger fines if they do not hit their next target of recycling 58 per cent of their waste in 2015/16.

Sargeant has said councils in Wales should be “incredibly proud of what we do in Wales”. To date, Wales is the only country in the UK that has surpassed the 50 per cent recycling mark, achieving 56 per cent recycling in 2014. The Welsh Government hopes Wales will reach 70 per cent recycling by 2025 and becoming a ‘zero waste nation’ by 2050.

Learn more about Wales’s approach to waste and resource management in an in-depth interview from Resource 79.