Meeting documents

Apologies were received from Mrs Jean Teesdale.

To disclose any personal or disclosable pecuniary interests.

There were none.

Of the meetings held on 31^st May and 27^th June 2016, to be confirmed as a correct record.

The minutes of the meeting held on 31^st May 2016 and 27^th June 2016 were confirmed as a correct record.

This is an opportunity for members of the public to put a question or raise an issue of concern, related to Environment, Transport and Locality Services.   Where possible, the relevant organisation to which the question/issue is directed will be present to give a verbal response.  Members of the public will be invited to speak for up to four minutes on their issue.  A maximum of 30 minutes is set aside for the Public Questions slot in total (including responses and any Committee discussion). This may be extended with the Chairman’s discretion. 

For full guidance on Public Questions, including how to register a request to speak during this slot, please follow this link:

http://www.buckscc.gov.uk/about-your-council/scrutiny/getting-involved/

There were none.

For the Chairman of the Committee to provide an update to the Committee on recent scrutiny related activity.

The Chairman reported that the Committee’s Inquiry report on Economic Development in Buckinghamshire had been presented to Cabinet yesterday and all recommendations had been accepted.  The Chairman thanked all members for their work on this Inquiry.

The Committee will be informed of proposed changes to the Waste Acceptance and Access Policy (WAAP) and Household Waste Recycling Centre operations.

Contributors:

Mr Warren Whyte, Cabinet Member for Planning and Environment

Miss Gurbaksh Badhan, Head of Waste Management

Mr Ade Marques, Waste Commissioning Lead Officer

The Chairman welcomed Mr Warren Whyte, Cabinet Member for Planning and Environment, Miss Gurbaksh Badhan, Head of Waste Management and Mr Ade Marques, Waste Commissioning Lead Officer to the meeting.  The Cabinet Member highlighted three main changes that were being proposed to the Waste Access and Acceptance Policy (WAAP) and the operation of the Household Waste and Recycling Centres (HWRC), which would enable the service to be delivered within the agreed 2016/17 budget. 

i)             A change of name from ‘Household Waste and Recycling Centres’ to ‘Household Recycling Centres’ – a simplification that emphasised recycling and the fact that sites were for householders rather than trade use. 

ii)            In Winter, the opening hours of the sites should be reduced from 9am to 5pm to 9am to 4pm.

iii)           The waste permit system would be digitalised, which would provide householders with immediate e-permits for certain types of waste or larger amounts of waste.  Currently permits were sent out in the post.

In response to questions from Members and during the subsequent discussions the following main points were noted:

·         Questions were raised about Fig. 1 in the report which showed the average daily visits by time of day during Winter.  Members suggested that weekend visits would be higher than weekdays but this was not clearly shown in the bar chart.  It was agreed that the Cabinet Member would revisit the detail of the breakdown of Winter visits, particularly at weekends, prior to making any decision.

ACTION: Cabinet Member for Planning & Environment

·         Concerns were raised that flytipping could increase as a result of changes to the permit system.  The Cabinet Member emphasised that flytipping was not tolerated and the Council had a strong record of prosecuting individuals, who were usually dumping trade waste.  A communications campaign would be put in place to publicise the changes and the e-permit system should be easier for residents.

·         A Member asked what proportion of those successfully prosecuted actually paid their fines or carried out community service, if this was part of their sentence.  It was agreed that this information would be supplied to the Committee following the meeting.

ACTION: Head of Waste Management

·         A small proportion of residents may not have internet access, which would be necessary to apply for an e-permit.  Alternatives such as using computers at a local library or being able to apply via the Contact Centre would be available.

·         Members acknowledged staff at the Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRC) who ran the sites well and the College Road site at Aston Clinton, a more modern facility, was held up as an impressive example.  It was noted that if the new e-permits scheme was introduced, staff at the sites would be asked to take a pragmatic approach if a resident arrived at the site without the necessary e-permit.

·         It was noted that earlier closing times during the Winter could mean that the District Councils who bring waste to the HWRCs would be under pressure to fulfil their waste collection duties. The Head of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

The Committee will receive an update on how the Council is discharging its statutory duties on Sustainable Drainage, which were introduced in April 2015. This will also be an opportunity to discuss plans for future development in this area.

Contributors:

Mr Warren Whyte, Cabinet Member for Planning and Environment

Mrs Karen Fisher, Strategic Flood Management Team Leader

The Chairman welcomed the Cabinet Member for Planning and Environment and Mrs Karen Fisher, Strategic Flood Management Team Leader to the meeting. The Cabinet Member highlighted that the new Sustainable Drainage (SUDs) team had dealt with a higher level of planning applications than anticipated but had responded to 90% of applications within the 21 day deadline.  In response to Members’ questions and during subsequent discussions, the following main points were noted:

·         It was important that the long term maintenance of SUDs on new developments was secured, perhaps through S106 agreements.  The Cabinet Member commented that there should be a national solution to this issue as there appeared to be some misunderstanding as to who was responsible for enforcement of SUDs conditions.

·         There was ongoing dialogue between BCC as the Lead Local Flood Authority (LLFA) and the District Councils as the Local Planning Authorities (LPAs) on this issue.  It was suggested that as the LLFA had the strategic flood expertise it might make sense for the LPAs to commission an enforcement service – BCC could not take on an enforcement role without the necessary budget.

·         With the Growth agenda, Members could foresee a massive demand on the SUDs team.  The Cabinet Member was asked if there was sufficient budget for 2016-17 and if increases have been built in for future years in order to keep up with demand.  In response, the Cabinet Member advised that the budget for this year was adequate but the added burdens funding which had been given to all LLFAs for SUDs this year, was now being rolled into the overall grant, which would end.

·         With regards to Growth, the Cabinet Member stated that it was vital to invest up front in order to prevent flooding issues later on.  Once the Local Plans were agreed, BCC would liaise with the District Councils to discuss the anticipated level of demand for the SUDs team.  It was noted that service level agreements between BCC and the District Councils to advise on minor applications might help the SUDs team to grow further.

·         It was noted that in some areas, S106 had been replaced by Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL). Bids had to be submitted to the District Council in order to access this funding, which could make planning ahead more difficult. The Cabinet Member acknowledged that ongoing discussions with the District Councils would be important to ensure that S106, CIL and New Homes Bonus monies would be used for vital infrastructure.

It was agreed that the Cabinet Member would provide the Committee with a written response to the points raised about the future budget for the SUDs service in light of the Growth agenda.

ACTION: Cabinet Member for Planning and Environment

The Chairman thanked the Cabinet Member and the Strategic Flood Management Team Leader for attending the meeting.

Members will receive a six month update to monitor progress towards the implementation of the Committee's Inquiry recommendations.

Contributors:

Mr Warren Whyte, Cabinet Member for Planning and Environment

Mrs Karen Fisher, Strategic Flood Management Team Leader

Mr Andy Fyfe, Head of Resilience and Community Safety

The Chairman welcomed the Cabinet Member for Planning and Environment, Mrs Karen Fisher, Strategic Flood Management Team Leader and Mr Andy Fyfe, Head of Resilience and Community Safety to the meeting.  The Committee received an update on the implementation of recommendations included in the Flooding in Buckinghamshire 2013-14: Lessons Learned Inquiry Report, which were agreed by Cabinet in December 2015. 

The following main points were noted:

·         A Members Briefing for all Councillors would be held on 15^th September which would cover the Council’s response to emergencies, including Flooding. Members were also reminded that BCC’s Emergency Plan and associated guidance can be found on the Intranet and templates for Community Resilience Plans could be accessed on the BCC webpages.  It was agreed that Member Services would ensure that an invitation would be sent out for the Member Briefing, as well as a reminder that useful information can be accessed on the Members Pages of the Intranet.

ACTION: Committee & Governance Adviser

·         The Strategic Flood Management Team supported local flood groups but resources were limited. Local members could help by promoting the BCC website which held a lot of useful information for residents on flooding and flood prevention.  The Flooding flow chart had been updated and it was agreed that this would be circulated to all Members and published on the Member Pages for ease of reference.

ACTION: Strategic Flood M’gement Team Leader/Ctte & Governance Adviser

·         A Member welcomed the Flood Flow Chart for giving clear directions of who to contact during a flooding incident, but questioned whether a proper response would be received if residents were directed to other partner agencies.  Mr Fyfe advised that the Environment Agency had an Extended Floodline Service, to which the County Council had subscribed, which meant that local information supplied by BCC and relating to BCC services, could be shared with callers who contacted the EA Floodline Service directly.  The Cabinet Member also commented that the quarterly Regional Flood and Coastal Committee meetings provided opportunities to remind partners of their responsibilities during flooding emergencies.

·         It was reported that studies had been carried out in a number of areas, in order to ascertain if anything could be done to prevent future flooding.  Once the conclusions had been drawn from these studies, options would be costed out and discussed with the communities concerned.  It might be possible to bid for some funding to support the implementation of small schemes, but it was unlikely to cover the full costs and therefore match funding would be needed.

The Chairman thanked the Cabinet Member, the Strategic Flood Management Team Leader and the Head of Resilience and Community Safety for attending the meeting and advised that the implementation of the recommendations would be revisited again at 12 months.

Members are invited to note the updated Committee Work Programme.

Members discussed possible topics that could be included on the work programme in future.  The following topics were noted:

·         Energy from Waste             

·         Local Area Forums

·         Devolution to Parishes

·         S106/CIL

The next meeting will take place on Tuesday 27^th September 2016 at 10am in Mezzanine Room 2, County Hall, Aylesbury. There will be a pre-meeting for Members of the Committee only at 9.30am.

The next meeting will be held on Tuesday 27^th September 2016 at 10am in Mezzanine Room 2, County Hall, Aylesbury.