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Recycling

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her strategy is to encourage the use of recycled fibre in the private sector. [184954]

Mr. Morley: Government recognise that it is not only important to collect materials for recycling, but to make good use of them. The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) was set up by Government and the Devolved Administrations to help in this area. Their aim is to create stable and efficient markets for recycled materials and products and to remove the barriers to waste minimisation, re-use and recycling.

Over the past three years WRAP have been working with a wide variety of businesses to encourage the use of recycled materials and also to find new uses for recycled materials.

Richard Ottaway: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the total tonnage of waste collected by community recycling organisations was in England in each year since 2000. [183187]

Mr. Morley: According to Defra's latest annual Municipal Waste Management Survey of local authorities in England, the total tonnages of voluntary organisation recycling are:

	Thousand tonne
2001–01	35
2001–02	35
2002–03	37

However, these figures are likely to be an underestimate as not all recycling carried out by community organisations is reported to local authorities.

The results of the survey are based on information supplied by local authorities in England for the financial year 2002–03, the latest year for which data are available. A summary of the survey was published on the Defra website in April this year and can be accessed through this link: http://www.defra.gov.uk/news/2004/040429a.htm

Richard Ottaway: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the total value of contracts between community recycling organisations and local authorities was in England in each year since 2000. [183188]

Mr. Morley: The Department does not collect this information.

Richard Ottaway: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many community recycling organisations were registered in England to collect waste in each year since 2000. [183189]

Mr. Morley: This information is not available. All organisations involved in waste collection are required to have a Waste Carrier's Licence or an Exemption to that requirement. The Environment Agency (EA) issues
 
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and regulates the licensing system but its records do not differentiate between commercial organisations, charities, community groups or individuals.

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps her Department has taken to tackle false claims of recycling achievements by the packaging industry. [183703]

Mr. Morley [holding answer 13 July 2004]: The Department, in conjunction with the Department of Trade and Industry, the Scottish Executive, the Welsh Assembly Government, the Northern Ireland administration, the Environment Agency, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and the Environment and Heritage Service in Northern Ireland has commissioned fact-finding exercises to establish whether there is any substance to the allegations of inappropriate issuing of Packaging Waste Recovery Notes (PRNs) and Packaging Waste Export Recovery Notes (PERNs) by some packaging waste reprocessors and exporters.

The first fact finding exercise took place last year and investigated the wood packaging waste sector. On completion of the exercise, the fact finding team presented their findings in a report which can be found on the Department's website at http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/topics/packaging/index.htm

During the course of the exercise the team established that there were no inappropriate operations of the kind that might warrant criminal proceedings. However, some assumptions were being made, for example about the tonnages of packaging waste in mixed loads, that were unrealistic or were made on the basis of insufficient evidence. The team therefore recommended that the amount of wood packaging waste recycled in 2002 should be reduced by 76,400 tonnes. This was done.

The second fact finding exercise is currently focusing on the plastic packaging waste sector and the findings will be announced shortly.

Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to increase the amount of recycling in London. [184279]

Mr. Morley: In common with all local authorities in England, London boroughs were set statutory national recycling and composting targets for 2003–04 and 2005–06.

To help support achievement of these targets over the last two years, Defra has allocated £24.9 million from the National Waste Minimisation and Recycling Fund to the London Recycling Fund, for a range of sustainable waste management schemes in London. A further £20.55 million has been awarded for 2004–05 to 2005–06.

Twenty-two London boroughs included a sustainable waste management target in the first round of local Public Service Agreements (PSA). The second round of local PSA negotiation is now under way and four London boroughs have proposed sustainable waste management targets.

I have also written to all local authorities offering direct consultancy support on waste management projects up to the value of £20,000.
 
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Set Aside

Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she will advise farmers of the rules for (a) set aside, (b) uncultivated fields and (c) permanent pasture; and if she will make a statement. [185145]

Alun Michael: With regard to set-aside, we will be advising farmers before the 1 August deadline. We will be making an announcement shortly on cross compliance conditions.

Single Farm Payments

Mr. Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make it her policy to allow farmers to receive single farm payment in Euros; and if she will make a statement. [185233]

Alun Michael: The Government are committed in principle to providing farmers with the option of receiving grants and subsidies in Euros. The computer systems at the Rural Payments Agency that will deliver the single payment are being developed with that in mind, and I will make an announcement in due course.

Stored Departmental Publications

Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many departmental publications are in storage; and where they are located. [183871]

Alun Michael: Defra regularly publishes reports, consultations and publicity material. The current list of titles published by the department and available to the public numbers 1,595, of which 438 are stored digitally and printed on demand. Publications are stored at Defra Publications, based in East Kilbride, Scotland.

Additionally, The Stationery Office publishes a number of publications on behalf of the department and for these publications retention and storage is a matter for the publisher.

The titles available are listed on the Defra website.

Toxic Waste Disposal

Richard Ottaway: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate her Department has made of the cost to business of the stock-piling of toxic waste in the six month period following 16 July owing to the short-term shortfall of disposal capacity. [183797]

Mr. Morley: None. It is Government policy to ensure as smooth a transition as possible of the implementation of the requirements of the Landfill Directive and to avoid the need for storage of hazardous waste over and above that which normally occurs.

Waste

Richard Ottaway: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if her Department will launch a public information campaign alerting businesses to their legal obligations as producers of waste. [183197]

 
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Mr. Morley: The Department is taking a range of measures to inform businesses of their legal obligations as producers of waste. Defra has issued a code of practice and information leaflet covering the duty of care requirements which are set out in Section 34 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. We are currently reviewing the duty of care regime which will result in a consultation later in the year and should assist in raising public awareness.

With the forthcoming changes to the management of hazardous waste, a dedicated hazardous waste web portal will be available at www.hazardouswaste.org.uk from the 16 July 2004. Other measures to inform businesses of these changes include leaflets, updated and signposted Defra, Environment Agency and Envirowise websites, press releases, case study material and a communication network, established primarily through the Hazardous Waste Forum.

The Envirowise programme, which is partly funded by Defra, offers businesses in the UK advice on their legal obligations relating to waste, together with a range of support and guidance on waste minimisation.

Defra and the Department for Trade and Industry are informing businesses of their obligations under the Packaging Regulations and the forthcoming Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations and End of Life Vehicles (ELV) Regulations. For example, during the implementation of the WEEE directive the Government have organised over 50 workshops to alert stakeholders to the regulations.

Defra also supports the Environment Agency-led NetRegs project, which provides businesses with an online plain English guide to the environmental legislation that applies to them, and how to comply with it.

Richard Ottaway: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if (a) her Department and (b) the Environment Agency will establish an online database to monitor flows of wastes and other materials through the economy. [183229]

Mr. Morley: Good quality data on waste is vital to monitor and evaluate performance, underpin planning and investment decisions and formulate strategy and specific policy interventions. Defra's Waste Implementation Programme has established a data work-stream to ensure effective co-ordination, provision and dissemination of reliable data on different waste streams, through the development of a national three-year data strategy.

Already in place is the development of a web-based intranet and central database to provide quarterly data on municipal waste. Waste Dataflow (www.wastedataflow. org) has been established by Defra together with the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management, and is widely supported. The system will provide more timely, efficient and accessible data than is currently available, helping to monitor progress against landfill directive targets. The Environment Agency has played an important role in helping to steer this project.

Our medium-term aim is to develop an accessible central database of current (and where available historic) data on all waste streams, working closely with the Environment Agency.
 
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Richard Ottaway: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what guidance her Department issues to business producers of waste on how to discharge the statutory duty under section 34 of the 1990 Environmental Protection Act and the extent of due diligence required of such a producer in discharging its duty. [183228]

Mr. Morley: Defra has produced "Waste Management The Duty of Care Code of Practice" to offer guidance on complying with section 34 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. This is available on the Defra website at: http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/management/doc/pdf/waste man duty code.pdf

Defra has recently re-issued a leaflet entitled "Waste and Your Duty of Care" which can also be accessed online at: http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/management/doc/index.htm

A comprehensive review of the duty of care regime is currently under way which will result in a consultation and an updated code of practice.

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