Agenda and minutes

An apology for absence was received on behalf of Councillor A Weinberg.

Councillor McKenzie welcomed attendees to the meeting and all attendees introduced themselves.

We have agreed the minutes of our meeting held on 23 June 2008.

PwC will be attending for this item only.

Mike Robinson introduced himself as the person responsible for the Audit being delivered.

He said he would like to draw our attention to pages 6 and 7 of the Audit Plan where they are proposing a fee of £36,200.  It is the same fee being charged by our current auditors for the 2007-08 Audit.  PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) will be reporting next in August/September 2009 on completion of 2008-09 Audit.

In respect of the table on risk assessment a Member expressed a view that the Autumn may be a more appropriate time to look at the relationship with Shanks.  Mike Robinson said that they will take the suggestion away and discuss when looking at risk issues.

Members agreed to receive the report on the External Auditor’s Audit Plan for the year 2008/09 and thanked PwC for their attendance. 

PwC attended for this item only.

The Finance Director’s representative explained his report and said that there is an underspend and that it is hard to predict for the rest of the year partly because the overall tonnages of waste for disposal may fluctuate.  He also explained that ELWA pays the Boroughs rent for the Reuse & Recycling Centre Sites.

Members noted this report.

ELWA’s Operations Director explained that a lot of work has gone into reviewing central monitoring arrangements and the new proposals had a number of advantages including a clearer reporting of PIs. 

The Assistant Executive Director explained that the report is timely now that the construction phase of the project was almost complete.  The assessment of Best Practice came from the background papers listed on the last page of the report.  Areas of improvement had been identified in the report as a result of this review. 

Members said a rigorous plan had been presented but Members needed to have further assurance.

Members requested a monthly report to enable them to assess progress on monitoring and whether they should meet to discuss.  The recommendations in the report were amended accordingly.

In response to question about the monitoring arrangements for in other Waste Disposal Authorities the Executive Director replied that no other Joint Waste Disposal Authorities have modern facilities with a long term PFI Contract in place.

Members agreed to note and agreed the recommendations (as amended).

Executive Director updated on the Waste and Recycling Board structure being created by London Councils.  Priorities and procedures for accessing funds have not yet been established by the new Board.

We have resolved to exclude the public and press from the remainder of the meeting by reason of the nature of the business transacted included the detailed business affairs of third parties which are exempt from publication by virtue of paragraph 3 of Part I of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972 as amended.)

The Assistant Executive Director presented his report.

Diversion from landfill was good and Shanks have confirmed the new Contract for the composting of fine materials.  There was still some risk that the recycling target might not be met unless corrective action was taken by the Contractor in respect to the other continuing recycling activities.

Members asked for a summary of the IWMS Contract and the Executive Director said this could be provided.

Members agreed the recommendations in the report.

Members are asked to receive and discuss with representatives of Shanks Waste Management Ltd, the attached presentation.

Representatives of Shanks Waste Management Limited attended our meeting from 2.50pm and gave a presentation on current performance.

Stephen Ray thanked Members for inviting them and explained the slides.  He said that the planned opening of the Orange Bag Mrf at Jenkins Lane is running slightly behind schedule.  It was scheduled for July but will probably be later in the year.  The underachievement in first quarter recycling from the Bio Mrfs, due to operational problems, is now getting back on track.  Bring site, Ilford Recycling Centre and green waste recycling performances are all good.

Stephen Ray explained work had been done work with their consultants and the forecast is that recycling performance will be level with ABSDP forecast by July and rise thereafter.  They have signed a 2 year contract for composting material from the Bio Mrf and are also looking at other outlets for this material.

Stephen Ray concluded with a summary and invited questions.

Members asked a number of questions relating to previous underperformance and on current forecasts and on contamination issues.  Further information will be provided on comparative work undertaken by Shanks and on the processing of the smaller orange bags.

The Chair asked Shanks for written reassurance for Members concerning a number of points discussed including glass recycling, contamination, education campaigns and improving the strength of orange bags.

Members asked if there is a plan B if any of the planned improvements are achieved and the response was that Plan B is about looking to the future with other new initiatives.

The Chair summed up and commended Shanks on performance with respect to diversion from landfill but expressed concern about continuing poor recycling performance. He also referred to a number of the points made including querying whether education campaigns were reaching all groups, asking how orange bag performance can be improved, and querying how overall performance will be improved after the slow start in the first quarter. Members were also looking to Shanks for advice and comparative information on recycling arrangements that would improve performance.

Following departure of Shanks at 3.55pm we considered the issues arising and concluded that a letter should be sent to the contractor as set out above.

Chair: ………………………………..

Dated:  ………………………………..