§ Mr. LoveTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has for dealing with the disposal of household waste in Greater London; what is the projected future use of(a) landfill, (b) incineration and (c) recycling in dealing with that waste; and if he will make a statement. [55289]
§ Mr. MealeAt present, decisions on the projected future use of landfill, incineration and recycling in Greater London are not for DETR but for the local authorities.
However, we recognise that there is a need for a strategic lead on municipal waste in London. That is why we will be giving the new Mayor for London a statutory duty to prepare and implement an integrated municipal waste management strategy for London. The strategy will encourage use of the various recovery, treatment and disposal options in line with the waste strategy for England and Wales which will be published by the end of 1999.
In the meantime, we are providing London Boroughs with up to £12 million under the Capital Challenge Programme to introduce kerbside waste collection schemes as part of an initiative to promote recycling 904W across the city. In the first 18 months of the 3 year programme, over 1 million homes have been brought into the scheme and the recycling rate has risen from around 5 to 11 per cent. The future use of landfill, incineration and recycling will depend on several factors, including the Mayor's strategy, efforts to reduce the amount of waste produced, efforts to promote recycling and find markets for recovered materials, and the availability of landfill.