HC Deb 08 April 2003 vol 403 cc137-8W
Mr. John Bercow

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list for Buckinghamshire by(a) tonnage and (b) percentage the amount of waste disposal by (i) landfill, (ii) recycling and (iii) incineration in 2002. [106933]

Mr. Meacher

The latest available data for municipal waste are taken from the 2000–01 Municipal Waste Management Survey. The data for Buckinghamshire are shown as follows.

Tonnages and percentages of municipal waste for Buckinghamshire for 2000–01 are: Landfilled—193.6 thousand tonnes (76.5 per cent.) Recycled and composted—59.5 thousand tonnes (23.5 per cent.) Incinerated—0.2 thousand tonnes (<0.5 per cent.)

Survey data for 2002 are not yet available.

Mr. Bercow

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many(a) waste incineration plants and (b) landfill sites there were in Buckinghamshire in 2002. [106988]

Mr. Meacher

(a) There were no waste incineration plants in Buckinghamshire in 2002.

(b) There were 14 landfill sites in Buckinghamshire in 2002.

Ms Walley

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the effects of municipal mass burn incineration of waste upon levels of waste recycling; and if she will make a statement. [105383]

Mr. Meacher

The Regulatory Impact Assessment of Waste Strategy 2000 (published in Annex C of part 2 of the strategy) assessed a variety of waste management scenarios and considered variables including different projections for waste growth, different mixes of waste management facilities, and differing levels of participation in recycling schemes. A similar exercise was carried out by the Strategy Unit and published in their "Waste Not, Want Not" report.

Our policy on municipal waste incinerators or other energy from waste facilities is that they should be considered only where it can be shown that they are appropriately sized so that they would not "crowd out" recycling. Guidance issued by the Government for Private Finance Initiative includes the criterion: proposals including incineration must demonstrate that all opportunities for recycling have been considered first and that there is no barrier to the future development of recycling. Schemes should include proposals for combined heat and power where possible.