SOMERSET could be forced to reverse a move to three-weekly collections of non-recylable waste under new plans being consulted upon by the government.

The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is consulting on new measures for waste collection – including a new law which would make it a legal requirement for households to have refuse collections at least once a fortnight.

The other proposals include free garden waste collections for part of the year and a deposit return scheme to reduce pollution caused by single use plastics.

The Somerset Waste Partnership (SWP) has said it has “serious concerns” about some of the proposals – as it prepares to appoint a waste contractor to undertake refuse collections every three weeks.

A report on the government’s intentions came before the Somerset Waste Board’s joint scrutiny panel in Taunton on Wednesday afternoon (March 27).

Development and monitoring officer Julie Searle said she had “serious concerns” about a legal commitment to fortnightly refuse collections, claiming it would not incentivise people to recycle.

She said in her written report: “Our own research has shown that restricting refuse capacity is a strong driver for increased recycling, and that once the recycling and food waste is removed, there is very little left to be disposed of in the refuse bin, which allows for lower frequency collections.

“Our view is that there is no evidence to support the government’s proposals. It is inconsistent with its own policy goal of zero avoidable waste by 2050, and will lead to waste producers paying more than is necessary under extended producer responsibility.”

The SWP will officially appoint its new waste contractor for kerbside collections on Friday (March 29), with the chosen company being announced publicly in May.

Under the new scheme, which will be rolled out from 2020, Somerset households will have their recycling collected every week, but refuse collections will reduce from fortnightly to once every three weeks.

Garden waste is currently collected fortnightly, with annual charges being levied by Somerset’s district and borough councils.

Ms Searle said Defra’s proposal for free garden waste collections “during the growing season” would “have a major impact” on both the SWP and the local authorities it served.

She said: “We estimate that it could cost us up to £6M with the removal of income to the districts, increased costs of collections, and diversion [of green waste] from recycling centres.

“It does not take into account people who may stop home composting (the preferred environmental option for garden waste) or the impact on recycling centres, with the loss of the large amounts of material and visits.

“The practicability of the proposals are questionable, including the part-year nature of it.”

Councillor Liz Leyshon said: “I sympathise with what’s coming your way. Local authorities are not in a good position at the moment.”

The SWP estimates that a deposit return scheme could cost it between £43,000 and £238,000 a year, depending on what kind of scheme was implemented.

Ms Searle told a Somerset Waste Board meeting in February that any scheme “could have a negative financial impact because aluminium is one of the more valuable kerbside materials – so removal of aluminium beverage cans would remove a significant amount of value from the recyclate.”

The SWP said it was not able to speculate further on the results of the government’s proposals, but added that the new Recycle More contract did allow changes from parliament during its lifetime.

A spokesman said: “Since the government’s proposals around collection frequency contain insufficient detail at this stage – except that they would not be introduced for some years and be subject to further consultation – we cannot speculate about any possible impact on the services delivered in Somerset.

“Recycle More collections will begin rolling out next year. Our new contract will run for ten years to 2030, with the option to extend to 2040.

“Like all contracts, it has provisions to deal with changes in law during the term of the contract.”

The SWP will make a full and detailed written response to all the Defra consultations before the deadline in mid-May.