§ Mr. Peter AtkinsonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when he proposes to publish the revised guidance in WMP4; and if he will make a statement on its impact on rural areas. [29547]
§ Angela EagleSection 51 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 places a duty on waste disposal authorities (eg County Councils) to arrange for places to be provided at which persons resident in their area may deposit their household waste free of charge. The fulfilment of this duty is a matter for each authority.
The previous Government initiated a consultation exercise on a proposal to amend the guidance in Waste Management paper No. 4 (WMP4) as it relates to the waste management licensing of sites provided under section 51 of the 1990 Act. These sites are known as "civic amenity sites". The effect of the proposal would be to give the Environment Agency, in England and Wales, and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, in Scotland, discretion to license un-manned civic amenity sites in rural and remote areas in certain circumstances. The representations made in response to the consultation exercise are being considered and our conclusions on the proposal to amend WMP4 will be announced as soon as we are in a position to do so.