The report – Driving Green Growth – the role of the management industry and the circular economy – claimed that, over the next decade, the waste management industry could create 84,000 new jobs.

As well as this, it also found that waste to energy has the potential to meet around half of the country’s residential gas demand.

SITA have said that the report is an attempt to demonstrate the benefits of a ‘circular economy’ – a ‘virtuous cycle’ which creates investment opportunity, innovation, growth, jobs and green energy.

It was also found that, to foster a circular economy, the UK needs a truly integrated policy framework that locks resource and energy use, production, consumption and waste management into a virtuous circle.

Various pieces of EU legislation governing the treatment of waste in the member states, notably the Waste Framework Directive 2008 are driven by the Waste Hierarchy.

According to the report, the legislation has meant that the rules for the industry have been significantly tightened up and also given clear signals regarding where the opportunities lie.

However, the report went on to conclude that the government needed to view the waste industry in a different light – more so as a key area in the broader economic base of the UK – as well as develop growth strategies that plan for optimal utilisation of the material and energy outputs from waste management.

Research shows that, through the use of recycled materials and re-manufacturing opportunities, there is also potential to help reinvigorate the country’s manufacturing sector.

“The UK currently has a unique opportunity to revitalise its economy by changing the way it manages waste. Investing in new waste treatment facilities will not only create employment and economic growth but consolidate a more secure energy supply,” explained David Palmer Jones, CEO SITA UK.

“The more effective use of recyclables will help reinvigorate UK manufacturing where waste provides the base materials for new products previously destined for landfill,” he added.

In Mr Jones’ opinion, the performance of the waste industry, paired with the continued innovation, makes a compelling case for businesses to unlock the funding and play a vital role in bridging ‘the green gap’ – which would significantly help the UK meet its carbon budget targets in 2020.

The report also warned that potential opportunities through the export of materials and energy – such as RDF – recovered from the waste stream are being missed out on in the UK.

Public perception was also highlighted as an area in which the government could significantly improve. According to the report, encouraging the use of funds and incentives, such as utility discounts could encourage community buy-in for waste projects.

BIS has announced that every investment will require match funding, which will mean that an additional £80 million of capital will be infused into the sector. Following the EU state aid approval, BIS is currently handling the Green Investment Bank’s three billion pounds in investments ahead of the institution’s formal launch.

“These first investments are a landmark moment. They represent a great opportunity to unlock substantial commercial investment in green technologies and infrastructure,” said Vince Cable.

“The government has committed to setting the UK firmly on course towards a green and growing economy and today is another important step in that direction.

“Investing directly now shows that we are not just sitting on our hands while we wait for the UK Green Investment Bank to receive state aid approval.”

The funds available are more likely to be used to support small to mid-sized waste management projects rather than the very large waste-to-energy projects. Out of the initial funding given, £50 million will be managed by Foresight Group, with the other remaining £30 million to be managed by Greensphere Capital.

Green Investment Bank are going to target five investment areas with the funds they are in control of – two of which are waste recycling and processing and energy from waste generation. The other investment areas include offshore wind projects, non-domestic energy efficiency and green deal energy efficiency scheme.

A spokesperson for the Chartered Institute of Wastes Management said: “It’s really encouraging that waste has been identified as a priority. This is a drop in the ocean compared to the level of investment that will be needed by 2020, so the ability of the bank to leverage further investment will be very important. But this is a very welcome development and we look forward to seeing the lending criteria and which investments will be selected.”

There is apparently scientific evidence claiming that large-scale composting plants could cause illness – this has led to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) launching an inquiry.

There are around 160 industrial-sized recycling facilities that have sprung up in Scotland in recent years, recycling tonnes of organic waste from kitchens, restaurants, gardens and farms before turning it into compost. Some researchers fear the sites could exacerbate asthma, respiratory infections and skin complaints in nearby areas with bioaerosols – airborne micro-organisms produced during composting – being released.

The Scottish Government’s ambitious recycling plans – which state that 70% of all waste should be recycled by 2025 – have sparked a huge rise in commercial composting. SNP ministers have supported recycling plants as an environmentally sound solution that cuts the amount of organic waste sent to landfill.

However, scientists are concerned about the health risks that some organisms could have on the public. New restrictions may need to be introduced regarding the location of new facilities and the amount of waste they can actually handle.

The chief executive of SEPA, James Curran, confirmed they are in the process of investigating. He said: “The number of commercial composting facilities in Scotland, and the amount of waste processed, continues to increase. This has led to concerns about the potential for composting activities to cause adverse health effects.

“There are many gaps and uncertainties in our scientific knowledge of the risks, particularly to people with existing health conditions.

“Research is being undertaken with a view to developing a more robust, risk-based and proportionate approach to the monitoring, assessment and regulation of commercial composting.”

The probe also involves experts from Scottish Water Horizons, a commercial recycling arm of Scottish Water and the UK Environment Agency.

The investigation will focus on the bioaerosols that are already in the air, particularly in rural areas and which are produced in large quantities at commercial composting plants and organic recycling facilities.

Council officers for the Culture and Environment Committee say that Camden is falling behind its recycling targets. The borough has a recycling rate of 32%, which is well behind the Government quotas which call for 50% of all waste to be recycled by 2020.

The Town Hall report reveals that a year after introducing a new system of having door-to-door collections for all recyclable materials – including food and garden waste – the tonnage of rubbish being recycled has not yet risen.

However, civic groups across the borough are concerned about the use of the large, bulky wheelie bins. There are fears that the bins will ruin the look of conservation areas and will not deal with the root cause of the problem.

Belsize Residents Association chairwoman Averil Nottage said that while there were problems with recycling, wheelie bins were not the answer.

She said: “We would be concerned about the impact of wheelie bins in Belsize. We fought long and hard to get rid of estate agent boards and this would be equally damaging to the character of the area.

“But it also would not be practical because of the variety of properties. This is a situation where one size does not fit all.

“A campaign to encourage recycling combined with alternative options for storing it would be a far better way forward.”

A spokesman for Camden Council said that the area faces some challenging issues when it comes to getting more waste of out landfills.

However, he also claimed that Camden had higher recycling rates than Kensington and Chelsea, Islington, Tower Hamlets, Westminster, Lambeth and Southwark last year.

As well as that, the spokesman revealed that the Council was reviewing collections that would see residents putting all recyclable goods into one big bin, but that no area had yet been chosen for wheelie bins.

The spokesman added: “We are providing collection services for all the materials that we are able to recycle but the tonnage has not increased over the last year, despite having a new borough-wide food and garden waste service.”

The lucky person was Lucy Sandall of Sandall Roofing – who has been a regular customer since the skip hire company was founded back in 2002. She was awarded a bottle of champagne and a free skip, much to her surprise and delight.

She said: “It was a nice surprise. We are regular customers. They are a local business and so are we and it is always nice to try and keep business in Bourne when possible.”

The Managing Director of Bourne Skip Hire, Chris Seggie, said: “We’ve been in business for ten years and we’ve had the 50,000th customer which is a bit of a landmark.

“We have kept a careful track on the number of skips through our invoices and with the 50,000th coming up we thought we would mark the occasion by doing something nice.

“We would like to thank all our customers who have supported us over the years.”

Households across more than 60 roads in Chew Moor, Westhoughton, as well as some from Church Street, did not have their green wheelie bins collected on the designated day of Monday.

Bolton Council bosses have said that some bins were collected on Tuesday and Wednesday when vehicles were sent back out.
Councillor Christopher Peacock, who represents Westhoughton North and Chew Moor, is calling for a review to be carried out by council chiefs to investigate why the collection has been missed for the second time in a year.

He said: “There have been a number of occasions recently when bins have not been collected due to vehicle breakdowns. I’d like to know how serious a problem this is and if it is, what will be done to rectify it.”

Councillor Peacock has taken the time to write to the council asking for the records to be looked at to see how often the bins have not been collected.

The records showed that 846 homes in 25 streets were missed in January alone – this left grey, burgundy and beige bins unemptied.

The problem was said to be down to a fleet of 36 vehicles developing numerous faults.

Councillor David Wilkinson, who represents Westhoughton South, said: “Senior management have to address the issue. It seems to be happening to certain rounds on a regular basis.”

A spokesman from Bolton Council said: “We apologise to residents for the inconvenience caused. Some bins were collected on April 17 and 18. In addition the council’s contact centre was notified on Monday evening and a recorded message about the issue, and what we were doing to rectify it, was put on their line from 8am on April 17.”

Based in Hamburg, Germany, the bin men use the unusual camera to take images of their favourite places in a bid to show the hidden beauty and changes of the city that they work to keep clean each and every day.

To convert the huge container into a functioning camera, a small hole was drilled onto one side of the dumpster so the image is projected onto a giant sheet of photo paper inside. Each shot takes approximately an hour to capture and is developed in a special lab.

The idea, dubbed the Trashcam Project, is the brainchild of Christoph Blaschke, Mirko Derpmann, Scholz & Friends Berlin, working with the Hamburg sanitation department.

“We drove to Hamburg, got a dumpster then drilled a hole in it and amazingly it worked, “ said Mirko, 40, from Berlin.
“The large photo papers are cut from a 30m roll of photo paper then processed in a special lab.

“We started mid-March, about 6 weeks ago, after the Hamburg sanitation department asked if we could do something special for the bin men.

“They wanted to show off the city they love and take care of on a daily basis in all its glory so it had to be something pretty special.

“Christoph Blaschke and I did some pinhole work last summer so when we got this commission to find something for the bin men we thought it’d be fun to turn a dumpster into a pinhole camera.

“To figure out how and to then build the camera into the dumpster took about two days. Then we closed the lid, opened the hole and hoped it came out okay.

“It’s physics – but you can’t believe it until you see it. We spent five days with the rubbish collectors going around Hamburg to take all the pictures.

“Now we’re finding a gallery to show off their work. We have plans to make more in colour in the future but that will be a bit harder.”

The black and white images of the old, historic city of Hamburg can be seen here http://www.flickr.com/photos/thetrashcamproject/

Pictures taken by Mirko Derpmann

The Commercial Vehicle Show is where the best in the UK’s road transport and logistics industry meet and interact with thousands of visitors.

Whether operators or suppliers – they’re all there, so Skip Hire Magazine made sure we were there to find out what was going on.

Debbie had a great time and made some fantastic contacts! Thumbs up!

We ladies like a bit of rough, and April’s Skip Hunk is no exception. Introducing Danny Wood from Urban Skips in Manchester. We have to give special thanks to Danny, who stepped in at the last minute to take the place of the director who was too shy to appear in these hallowed pages. Maybe next time. In the meantime, let’s chat to Danny about pot-bellied pigs, his never ending devotion to his job and his unusual taste in women…

Hi Danny, how old are you?

24

And your starsign?

 Aries – the ram!

So you’re a bit outspoken, have a bit of a temper and independent? What’s your relationship status?

Married … with 6 kids.

Woah – you have your hands full! What do you do, job-wise?

JS driver and part time cleaner

What’s the best bit about your job?

Being part of a committed team to recycling

 What’s the worst part?

Going home

Mmm, we’re not too convinced about that answer. What do you like getting up to in your spare time?

Collecting pot-bellied pigs – I have a keen nose for a good one.

Who would be your ideal skip chick?

Deirdre off Corrie

It must be the glasses and those lovely chain belts she wears. What’s your favourite joke?

I phone the council and asked them if I could have a skip outside my house. They said that I could do what I want it’s my house.

Mmm, his taste in jokes is about as bad as his taste in women. Stuart – do you have any dirt you want to dish on Danny before we go?

Yeah! He once bought a motorbike helmet and decided to try it on at home in front of a full length mirror, the problem for Danny was that was all he was wearing when his mam came into his bedroom. Ooops!

 Oops indeed. And with that image of a naked Danny in mind, let’s move on… Thanks Danny!

For once, a bin that smells of roses – because this April, we’ve been treated to Claire Nicholls from Northwich who is dressed as a wheeliebin. Claire is not normally dressed as a bin, but takes part in a lot of charity events with her company, UKCM. In fact, she’s taking part in a 24 workathon at the office – which means she’ll be eating, working and sleeping in her office, all in the name of charity! You can find out how to sponsor her below, but in the meantime, let’s meet her!

Hi Claire, nice outfit! What’s your star sign?

Sagittarius

So you’re positive, exciting and adventurous! What is your role at UK Containers?

I’m the UK Planning and Production Manager

Sounds impressive, but what do UK Containers do?

Repair and refurbish all types of waste and recycling containers.

How long have you been working there?

Three years

What do you enjoy about working there?

Every day there is a new challenge. No day or ‘Bin’ is the same

What’s your least favourite part of the job? 

Bin Juice!

Ew! Grim! What are your colleagues like to work with? 

Amazing, we’re like a little family (All 78 of us)

How lovely. Who would be your ideal skip hunk?

Bruno Mars in a Hi-Vis, Rigger Boots & A Hard Hat singing ‘Marry You’…………Then I wake up!

You’re posing inside a custom made bin. What do you use it for? 

For Charity Events. All the staff at UKCM like to dress up!!  On the 5th July we are doing a 24 hour workathon for East Cheshire Hospice, visit here to give us your cash! http://www.justgiving.com/UKCMWorkathon – (Please sponsor me!)

What do you like doing in your spare time? 

Research innovative solutions for the waste and recycling industry of course, that and socialising.

Thanks Claire, you’ve ‘wheelie bin’ a great Skip Chick! Thanks very much and good luck with the workathon!

Remember, visit http://www.justgiving.com/UKCMWorkathon for more details on how to support the lovely Claire and her workmates out.