Fife Council has announced today it will be the first council in Scotland to sign up to WRAP’s (Waste & Resources Action Programme) Halving Waste to Landfill commitment. Fife Council will join Laing O’Rourke and Hamilton Waste Recycling Ltd to bring the voluntary commitment to the Scottish construction industry.
The reduction of construction waste is a key focus for the industry and WRAP’s Halving Waste to Landfill commitment is a voluntary framework devised to help achieve a 50% reduction in construction, demolition and excavation waste sent to landfill by 2012. This initiative, which has been supported by the Scottish Government, is viewed as environmentally and financially critical – due to increasing costs of waste disposal.
Iain Gulland, WRAP’s Director for Scotland, added: “WRAP’s Halving Waste to Landfill commitment is gaining phenomenal success, with over 60 organisations across England and Scotland already signed up. We are delighted to see Fife Council sign up to the commitment and they have demonstrated a proactive position on reducing their waste with both financial and environmental benefits. We look forward to seeing many more Scottish councils and organisations sign up in the future.”
Fife Council is the third largest local authority in Scotland and has set itself strict waste reduction targets with the aim of becoming the leading green council in Scotland. As part of this it has committed to the Halving Waste to Landfill commitment and set a target of achieving and exceeding zero waste to landfill by 2012.
Councillor Tony Martin who is Chair of Fife Council’s Environment, Enterprise & Transportation Committee said “I was delighted to sign the WRAP Construction Commitments on behalf of Fife Council. We have set ourselves the goal of becoming the leading green council in Scotland and signing up to the Commitments is another demonstration of our drive to achieving this ambitious target. The Council is one of the biggest building and construction organisations in Fife and we have a duty to make our operations as sustainable as possible, and also lead by example. We are already making progress in the way we work, for example buying more (recycled and) recyclable materials for construction work, and segregating waste for recycling, and this means we are confident of meeting and indeed exceeding the commitment to halving the waste we send to landfill by 2012.”
Richard Lochhead, Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment said “I am delighted that Fife Council is strengthening its commitment to zero waste and leading the way for other Scottish local authorities in signing up to this commitment. As a major player behind large construction projects in Fife, the Council’s involvement has great potential for making a difference, both through its own activities and influencing those of its contractors. Everyone must play their part in reducing waste, and only by all working together in this way will we be able to achieve a Zero Waste Scotland.”
Since the commitment was launched in October 2008, over 60 organisations have now signed up to WRAP’s voluntary agreement – including leading clients, developers and contractors such as Land Securities, Defence Estates, retail company ASDA and Bovis Lend Lease.
For more information on the Halving Waste To Landfill agreement – including how to sign up call the WRAP helpline on 0808 100 2040.
