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Waste Partnership for Buckinghamshire gets new lead member for next 12 months

| September 18, 2018

Mike Smith, Cabinet Member for Environment at Chiltern District Council.

A new lead has taken over at the Waste Partnership for Buckinghamshire.

Following a hugely successful year under the chairmanship of Bill Chapple OBE, Buckinghamshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Planning and Environment, the leadership baton has been passed on to Mike Smith, Cabinet Member for Environment at Chiltern District Council.

Mike Smith will provide the lead for the Partnership’s continuing work over the next 12 months.

The Waste Partnership brings the work of the County Council and the four District Councils together with a major focus on fighting food waste, increasing recycling and combating fly tipping right across the County.

Over the last year the work of the five partners has seen close to a 10% rise in the amount of food waste that is properly separated out, collected and recycled. This means the food waste goes to an anaerobic digester where it is turned into both bio gas and fertiliser.

Overall, the County’s recycling rate is 56.7%, meaning over half of Buckinghamshire’s waste is recycled or reused in some way.

The Partnership also works closely together to fight the scourge of fly tipping and as a result fly tippers are sixteen times more likely to be caught and prosecuted compared to the national average.

Most recently, the Partnership launched S.C.R.A.P, its latest campaign against the dumpers which particularly focusses on the importance of both householders and businesses to properly check the credentials of those they use to dispose of their rubbish.

Speaking after his year, Bill Chapple OBE said he was delighted with progress. ‘The Partnership has really driven through a series of major improvements over the past year and I know all the councils involved will continue that good work into the future. But our success is really down to the extra efforts by local people to recycle more and do their bit. My sincere thanks to go to all of them.

Mike Smith said: ‘I am pleased to take over as chairman for the Partnership. Over the years, we have gone from strength to strength through the solid commitment of the five councils to deliver improvements. Waste recycling and stopping fly tipping remain big issues for local people and we will keep both areas at the top of our agenda.

Further information on fighting food waste and recycling can be found at www.recycleforbuckinghamshire.co.uk.

Information on fly tipping and the S.C.R.A.P campaign is available at www.recycle4bucks.co.uk/flytip.

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