Handing a contract to manage Scotland’s incoming bottle return scheme to waste services giant Biffa will lead to “significant” job losses across the sector and increased CO2 emissions, an industry body has claimed.
The Resource Management Association Scotland (RMAS), which represents Scottish SME resource and waste management operators, is now calling on the new First Minister to step in and pause the start of the “deeply flawed” deposit return scheme (DRS).
When the scheme comes into force at the end of August, consumers will have to pay an extra 20p when they buy drinks in single-use containers.
They then earn their money back by taking their empty can, glass or bottle to vending machines placed around the country.
Last year Circularity Scotland, who is running the deposit return scheme, announced announced the appointment of Biffa as its sole logistics service provider.
The US-owned company will be responsible for collecting qualifying drinks containers from return points and managing bulking and counting centres where materials will be processed for recycling.
‘Decimate’ smaller waste operators
However, RMAS has accused Circularity Scotland and Biffa of failing to meet a pledge to explore opportunities to utilise the sector’s existing infrastructure, collection services and networks to operate the DRS.
It says the decision to appoint a single, centralised contractor will “decimate” smaller waste operators leading to lost revenues, job cuts and a reduction in customer choice for waste collection services, especially in remote, rural and island communities.
But both Biffa and Circularity Scotland have hit back at the claims saying the contract is leading to more than 500 new jobs being created and more than £80 million is being spent on opening processing centres.
Biffa has already announced plans to establish recycling depots in Aberdeen and Thurso, and will also unveil plans for similar in Inverness and Dundee.
RMAS has also raised concerns that the move could result in an increase in long haul collections creating higher carbon emissions.
It says the scheme could be digitalised to help lower carbon emissions and alleviate many of the financial and administrative concerns being raised by smaller retailers.
Flaws in scheme ‘unfair’ advantage
RMAS chairman Drew Murdoch said: “While we are fully behind the aims and intentions of the DRS, the proposed scheme is badly flawed.
“The decision to appoint a single contractor gives an unfair market advantage to one large operator.
“This goes against assurances we were given by Circularity Scotland and Biffa that opportunities to utilise existing infrastructure and collection services would be fully explored.
“Instead, we are faced with the situation that, from August, hospitality businesses currently serviced by multiple operators across the Scottish waste management sector will have no alternative but to accept Biffa’s services for the collection of all qualifying drinks containers.
“This will decimate our industry putting many small waste management companies out of business and lead to significant job losses, particularly within rural and island communities.”
‘Put the brakes on planned launch’
The group is now calling for the DRS to be realigned and rolled out in tandem with schemes being planned in England and Northern Ireland which are proposing to exempt glass from collections.
Mr Murdoch said: “The Scottish Government has so far missed an opportunity to engage with our sector, but we are still keen to support the design of a more appropriate scheme which optimises existing recycling infrastructure as well as related logistics and collections networks.
“We now call on the new First Minister to put the brakes on the planned launch once they are elected later this month.
“To be successful, the DRS needs to be rolled out on a UK basis and in line with the proposed schemes in England and Northern Ireland and exclude glass which is already widely collected through kerbside recycling programmes.”
Contract creating jobs
A Biffa spokesman insisted it was working with smaller suppliers as part of the contract.
In a statement, the firm said: “Recruitment is well underway for an additional 500 people to work on DRS, and we’re actively engaged with a number of small and medium organisations in Scotland to help us deliver parts of the scheme.
“We’re also investing £80million on infrastructure, including opening processing centres in Motherwell, Aberdeen, Thurso, Inverness, Dundee and Grangemouth to count, sort and bale the plastic, glass and aluminium drinks containers collected through the scheme.
“Work has already started on most of these sites and several counting machines have already been delivered.
“The wider scheme also aims to ensure that at least 90% of recyclable drinks containers are captured and prevented from becoming waste. That’s more than two billion bottles and cans every year.”
A Circularity Scotland spokesman said: “We are committed to delivering a DRS that works as efficiently and cost effectively as possible and are actively working with recycling, waste and logistics providers across Scotland to identify opportunities to work in partnership and utilise existing collection arrangements.
Biffa was selected as a result of their unparalleled expertise in supporting large scale and complex recycling schemes across the world.”
Circularity Scotland spokesman
“We are also in regular contact with waste management teams from all local authorities in Scotland about synergies with their recycling networks. As well as minimising costs, this will help to ensure that emissions from collection vehicles are kept as low as possible.
“Biffa was appointed as the official logistics partner for the Deposit Return Scheme in Scotland after a full and robust bidding process, which included smaller Scottish based operators.
“Biffa was selected as a result of their unparalleled expertise in supporting large scale and complex recycling schemes across the world.”
Political support
A cross-party group of MSPs, which includes former minister Fergus Ewing; fellow SNP colleague Christine Grahame; Labour’s Claire Baker; Liberal Democrat Liam McArthur; and Conservative Maurice Golden, is also backing RMAS.
Mr Ewing said: “The DRS will cause unnecessary upheaval to businesses, especially within this economically challenging environment.
“As well as adversely impacting the wider waste management sector, I share the RMAS concerns that the appointment of a large, single contractor may also be at odds with the Scottish Government’s National Economic Transformation Strategy where the focus is on using existing providers at local level across Scotland to address the threat of climate change.”
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