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11 Jul 2005 : Column 650W—continued
Llancloudy
Mr. Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 30 June 2005, Official Report, column 1643W, on Llancloudy, if she will ensure that no route for removal of waste from Hill Farm Llancloudy is agreed before her officials meet the hon. Member for Hereford and a representative of the Llancloudy Residents Association; and if she will make a statement. [10984]
Mr. Bradshaw: I can assure the hon. Member that my officials will not finalise agreement on the route for the removal of waste from Hill Farm, Llancloudy until they have met with the hon. Member and a representative of the Residents Association. My officials will be in contact with the hon. Member's office to arrange a mutually convenient date for the meeting.
Marine Noise Pollution
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether marine noise pollution was discussed at the recent International Whaling Conference; and if she will make a statement. [8905]
11 Jul 2005 : Column 651W
Mr. Bradshaw: At last year's (2004) annual meeting of the International Whaling Commission a special symposium was held on the impacts of anthropogenic noise on cetaceans. This year's meeting continued discussions on the potential negative impact of rising levels of disturbance on whale populations, due to factors such as ship traffic and seismic surveys, and it was decided to hold a scientific workshop to consider the effects of anthropogenic noise at next years meeting.
My Department has been working with other countries, through the Agreement on the Conservation of Small Cetaceans of the Baltic, North East Atlantic, Irish and North Seas (ASCOBANS) toward the prevention of significant disturbance to cetaceans, including that of acoustic disturbance.
Recycling
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans the Department has to make recycling facilities more readily available; and if she will make a statement. [10347]
Mr. Bradshaw: Responsibility for the provision of recycling facilities rests with local authorities who have been set statutory performance standards for 2003–04 and 2005–06 for the recycling and composting of household waste.
Defra, and Government more widely, recognise the challenge local authorities in England face meeting these statutory performance standards and the increase in costs as waste is diverted away from landfill. Accordingly, we are providing increased levels of support and funding.
Local authorities' main source of funding for waste management is the Environmental, Protective and Cultural Services (EPCS) block of the revenue support grant distributed by central Government each year, supplemented by council tax. In last year's Spending Review (SR2004) the Government announced an increase in EPCS Formula Spending Share block of £888 million by 2007–08 over 2004–05.
Funding is also being provided from a variety of other sources to help authorities meet and exceed their targets. The Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant (WPEG) is providing unringfenced funding to local authorities worth £45 million in 2005–06 and £105 million and £110 million in the two following years. Through the private finance initiative (PFI), credits worth £355 million have been made available in the three years to 2005–06 as an extra source of funding, with a further £535 million available in 2006–07 and 2007–08.
Alongside the additional funding, we are providing increased support to local authorities through a number of organisations including the Waste Implementation Programme and the Waste and Resources Action Programme.
Local authorities decide how to invest this funding in the provision of local recycling services that best meet local circumstances and the wishes of their electorate.
11 Jul 2005 : Column 652W
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many recycling points there are in each local authority in Essex per 1,000 population; and how many there were in each of the last five years for which figures are available. [10463]
Mr. Bradshaw: Results from the Defra Municipal Waste Management Survey and National Statistics mid-year population estimates are in the following table.
A recycling point has been reported as either a recycling site or a civic amenity site. All civic amenity sites under the control of Essex Waste Disposal Authority, have been allocated to the district where that site is situated.
(14)This figure is an estimated value used to replace a non-response on the survey questionnaire.
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Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many recycling points there are in (a) Lancashire and (b) Chorley. [10990]
Mr. Bradshaw: Results from the 2003–04 Defra Municipal Waste Management Survey are as follows:
(15)Chorley borough council has one civic amenity site run by Lancashire county WDA within its boundary. This has been excluded from the Chorley total.
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