Councillors updated on waste infrastructure projects

An update on waste management projects was presented to Members of The Highland Council’s Communities and Place Committee today (10 November).

The Council is undertaking a number of projects aimed at meeting its responsibilities for disposal of waste collected from around 110,000 households and 5,800 businesses. The Council must find a long-term solution for 80,000 tonnes of residual biodegradable waste each year that cannot be recycled nor landfilled in Scotland after 2025.

An operating licence has been applied for a Waste Transfer Station at Aviemore where works are nearly complete.

Work is also under way for a Waste Transfer Station at Inverness Longman on a site access road, gullies, and drainage. The waste transfer station is scheduled for practical completion in early 2023.

Members were updated on the situation regarding the development of a Waste Transfer Station in Fort William. A new lease is required for the existing Household Waste Recycling Centre at Ben Nevis Industrial Estate and the Council is liaising with the landowner. Land surveys have been carried out on the preferred site for the new Transfer Station adjacent to the Recycling Centre and the Council awaits detailed results to inform whether site remediation works will be required and what the associated costs would be.

Regarding the long-term management of waste in Highland, the Committee was informed that the Council’s Member Waste Strategy Working Group met last week on 5 November to discuss the proposed phasing of work to develop a detailed project plan for the Green Energy Hub proposed for the Longman site.  This will provide members with the detail on costs, benefits, risks and other issues to inform future decision on whether and how to proceed.

Councillors noted that all 7 applications to the Scottish Government’s Recycling Improvement Fund totalling £7.616m have met the criteria for second stage applications. These include:

• Garden Waste Collection Expansion (East Inverness and Nairn) which was approved by the Zero Waste Scotland board. The Council awaits Scottish Government approval.
• Expansion of Food Waste collections (Nairn, Mid/East Ross and Fort William).
• Improvements to Bring Facilities.
• Community Composting.
• Household Waste Recycling Centre Improvements.
• Kerbside Collections.
• Technology based solutions – Automatic Number Plate Recognition at Inverness Household Waste Recycling Centre.