Development of a Civil Amenity Contract for Waste Management in Devon

The Waste Framework Directive (91/156/EC) requires Member States to establish both a network of disposal facilities and competent authorities with responsibility for issuing waste management authorisations and licenses.

Devon County Council as a Waste Disposal Authority has a duty to provide places at which persons resident in its area may deposit their household waste free of charge for recycling or disposal.  It is current County Council policy to provide such a facility within 10 miles of every household.  In Devon there are currently nineteen recycling centres within the County, these are supplemented by eight rural skips.

These recycling centres are run under contract running for 5 years and incorporating an obligation on the contractor to achieve certain recycling targets. Working with Devon County Council officers a new Civic Amenity Contract was drafted by Abricon which included new Conditions of Contract, Specification, Method of Measurement and an innovative payment mechanism.  This was structured so that it gives the Civic Amenity Site contractor a financial reward for exceeding the recycling targets, and a financial penalty should he fail to meet them. 

In 2003/04 the average recycling rate at the recycling centres was 48%. As a direct result of the contract incorporating recycling incentives and other efforts by Devon County Council, recycling rates have generally increased by approximately 1% year on year as the County strives towards its targets set in its Municipal Waste Strategy and those set by Central Government.