Council approves £70k investment in wardens to oversee city centre clean up

07 December 2016

Aberdeen City Council’s Finance, Policy and Resources Committee has approved expenditure of up to £70,000 to fund two officers as part of the City Warden Team to ensure that city centre businesses comply with waste management.

The two officers will have responsibility for the City Centre Waste Compliance Project from March 2017 through to 2018.

Councillor Jean Morrison, Convener of Aberdeen City Council’s Zero Waste sub- committee said “I’m very happy that the budget for the officers has been approved as it underlines our commitment to clean up our city centre and tackle business waste.

“We have lots of good examples of businesses recycling in the city centre and minimising waste. This an approach we would like to see all our businesses adopt, not only to meet their statutory obligations but to make our city a much nicer place to live in. The City Wardens will help us reinforce that message”

Businesses are required to take all reasonable steps to meet their obligations under the Waste (Scotland) Regulations 2012. This includes separating dry recyclable materials (i.e. glass, metals, plastics, paper and card, including cardboard) for collection.

In addition, food businesses such as cafés, restaurants or food takeaways in an urban area producing over 5 kg of food waste per week, must also take all reasonable steps to ensure food waste is separately collected.

Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) regulates the segregation of material for recycling, including food waste that is processed into a premium-grade compost and used by local farmers.

Eleanor Strain, a waste specialist with SEPA, gives the following advice: “Establishing a culture of waste segregation in your business doesn’t take long. Look at what types of waste you are producing and get advice from your waste contractor, like Social Bite have, on the best way to manage it. Train your staff and label bins clearly, to put the right waste in the right place.

“The need to separate material for recycling has applied since 2014 but we are still finding food businesses which don’t carry out this basic duty of care. For those who consistently fail to segregate, we will issue a £300 fixed monetary penalty, so take steps now to ensure you comply.”