Lancashire Action

Waste and Recycling

Considerable progress has been made into tackling the issues associated with waste in Lancashire.

The Lancashire Waste Partnership was formed in 2001 when Lancashire County Council, the 12 district authorities, and the 2 unitary authorities signed up to Lancashire’s Municipal Waste Management Strategy. This committed the county to achieve the following waste reduction targets:

• Decrease waste growth and stabalise it at 1%.
• Recycle and compost 40% of all waste.
• Introduce segragated waste collection to 90% of all households for the collection of garden and kitchen waste and dry recyclables (such as paper, textiles, cans, plastics and glass).

In 2003, the Lancashire Waste Partnership won the National Recycling Award. Since its establishment it has achieved the following:

• £4 million worth of funding secured for recycling schemes.
• Green waste collected from an additional 129,000 households.
• Dry recyclable collection from an additional 115,000 households.
• An increase in rubbish collected for composting from 5,000 tonnes in 2002/3 to 31,000 tonnes in 2003/2004.
• Free home compost kits distributed to 75,000 homes .

In addition, Lancashire County Council Waste Minimisation Team are promoting the use of washable nappies as an alternative to disposables through ‘Bottom Line, Lancashire’s Real Nappy Project’. Two nappy laundry services have also been established in Lancashire.

The Lancashire Community Recycling Network established in 2003 provides practical support for existing and emerging community groups involved in sustainable waste management practices in Lancashire.

All of these factors have contributed to an increase in the recycling rate of the county, and consequently an overall decrease in the proportion of waste sent to landfill in Lancashire, from 88.1% in 2000/2001 to 73.9% in 2003/2004.

Water Supply

United Utilities manage the distribution of water and wastewater in the North West. They have invested in a long-term programme to reduce the amount of water wasted in the region. This has involved improving the distribution network so there is less water loss from leaking pipes.

Reducing the amount of water lost will hopefully ease the pressure on meeting present and future demands for water.

The ‘Water Resources for the Future’ strategy published by the Environment Agency, aims to target issues at a more local level. Regional strategies were therefore produced at the same time. This included the publication of a Water Resources Strategy for the North West Region. This is a 25 year strategy, and has the aim to ensure ‘Enough water for all human uses with an improved water environment’.

The Environment Agency also has a North West Drought Plan, which aims to:

• Monitor reservoir, groundwater, river, and rainfall levels against the demand for water.
• Manage the impact of drought on the environment.
• Put in place actions to manage drought conditions.
• Work with water companies to enable adequate supply of water to the people of the region.

Water Quality

The Environment Agency regularly takes samples of the region’s water to test it for a variety of chemicals, and puts in place measures to remove any such contamination.

United Utilities have invested in a long-term programme of improving sewer networks and wastewater treatment. This will also improve the quality of our water.

Coastal Water

To improve the quality of our coastal waters, The North West Bathing Forum was established in 1999. It is involved in collating information on water quality, and has the expertise to identify actions that can help contribute to solving any problems. The major role of the North West Bathing Forum is to ensure that our waters meet the terms of the EC Bathing Water Directive. Lancashire County Council is an active member of the North West Bathing Water Forum.

In order to improve the management of coastal regions in the North West, The North West Coastal Forum was developed. This partnership brings together stakeholders from the public, private, and voluntary sectors. The main aim of the Coastal Forum is to ensure long-term sustainability of the regions coastline by working to promote and deliver integrated management for coastal areas. In 2002, the North West Coastal Forum merged with the North West Bathing Forum to further integrate work on coastal issues.

PISCES: The Partnership of Irish Sea Coast and Estuary Strategies, and was formed from 10 local partnerships coming together. PISCES works with a number of agencies within the North West region that have an interest in the coast. Primarily, the organisation aims to ‘promote sustainable use and integrated management of the North West coast’. It also aims to raise the profile of North West coastal issues with key decision makers and organisations.

The Morecambe Bay Partnership works towards sustainable management for the coast in that area by improving the co-ordination and communication between local people, local authorities, agencies, industries, and voluntary bodies.