London Remade cements alliance to Mayor by backing SWA

The mayoral vision of a single, strategic authority to manage all of the capital's waste is the right one, according to recycling partnership London Remade.


In a recent statement the board of the partnership has come out on the side of the Ken Livingstone in the great strategic waste debate, saying that strengthening the regional tier for planning and investment for waste disposal and recycling in London will be in the best interests of the capital, its sustainability and the development of markets for recycled products.

But it has also attempted to mollify the oppostion, diplomatically suggesting that the Mayor has underestimated the work already being done by various boroughs and waste management authorities.

Chief executive of London Remade, Daniel Silverstone said: “London is not currently managing its waste effectively.

“We cannot carry on like this if London is to meet its regulatory targets. London Remade therefore welcomes the opportunity for change offered by the Mayor’s proposals and by the Commission on London Governance.

“There is a real danger though that the debates around the Mayor’s proposals will take the focus away from the improvements that London is going to need to achieve in the medium term.

“London Remade will want to focus on practical proposals designed to maintain positive momentum in London’s waste management capacity and performance while the precise nature of new regional arrangements are hammered out.

“We will focus particularly on the business development opportunities to grow sustainable markets for recycled materials, invest in both green businesses and London’s reprocessing infrastructure.

“Through our national and international networks we intend to identify strategic models for planning and managing waste which can be customised for the unique context of London.”

London Remade particularly supports the Mayor’s focus on all waste streams rather than solely focusing on municipal waste recycling.

The partnership is already developing ways to establish more effective markets for semi processed and recyclable materials.

Its priorities are to ensure that in the long term, London is able to manage and process its own waste, greatly reducing the capital’s reliance on landfill.

Colin Roberts, chair of London Remade, said: “As the amount of waste being produced in London escalates, there is a growing need for new infrastructure to deal with it.

“The current regional planning system for new facilities is not fit for purpose and I strongly support the proposed regionalisation of waste planning responsibilities.

“However, the Mayor’s scoping paper underestimates the achievements of many London boroughs and waste disposal authorities, and we can model future arrangements on the best local authority and waste industry practices in London.

“London Remade’s independent status and excellent working relationships with the GLA, Defra the LDA, waste authorities, waste companies, banks and developers, enables us to make a creative contribution to debate and to the changes whatever they may be.”

In the meantime London Remade will continue its work with London’s waste authorities and the GLA to ensure that London does not step backwards during any transition towards new waste disposal and planning arrangements in the capital.

By Sam Bond

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