PRESS RELEASE

18 May 2006

For immediate release

 

Backing the Box

CRN UK dismisses as completely unsubstantiated a claim made in a recent Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL) report that wheeled bins rather than kerbside boxes are best for collecting recyclables.

The report (Manual Handling in Kerbside Collection and Sorting of Recyclables HSL/2006/25) was the subject of a letsrecycle.com story last Friday (12 May 06).

The first recommendation of the report oddly refers to 'previous research' relating to wheelie bins, but is not directly related to any data collected within the report itself. The author Dr Andrew Pinder has previously carried out research on behalf of the HSE, however that research focused on refuse collections using wheelie bins and bags.

CRN UK fails to see how one system can be considered when recommending the use of wheeled bins as 'more appropriate' than another without using comparable data or having an understanding of the complete recycling collection systems from beginning to end.

Andy Moore, CRN UK Coordinator said: "Our understanding from the HSE, who commissioned the report from HSL, is that it has not adopted the report or its findings. Given this, CRN UK is writing to HSE this week to ask why the report appears on its website."

CRN UK will continue to work on the complex issues raised concerning box design mentioned in the other HSL recommendations and adopt some of these measures as a standard for its members. However it is concerned that laboratory studies in the HSL report measuring box weights are not reflecting an accurate representation of those actually being lifted on the streets, and that the sample observation period was extremely short at less than 100 minutes in total for all three systems.

The Centre for Health and Environment Research and Expertise (CHERE) has already been carrying out independent research for training purposes looking into health and safety issues relating to box and bag collections. Significantly, the maximum box weight recorded in this study of nine kerbside operators fell below the 13kg HSL maximum recommended weight and the mean weight was 4.9kg. In fact the CHERE study was unable to 'identify any significant risks within kerbside recycling operations using boxes and bags that could not be effectively managed and controlled'.

Andy Moore, Coordinator of the CRN UK, added:

"In our view there is no statistical evidence to conclude that there is any major hazard associated with kerbside box collections. It is our view that this research seemingly published by the HSE contains significant flaws or omissions.

"We are however open to suggesting modifications to the systems deployed by our members, which are constantly evolving. We've been cooperating with the HSE in other research and have shared our own kerbside accident survey figures with the HSE, which show considerably lower accident rates than the waste industry in general.

"In scrutinising kerbside box collections, which it seems to be doing as a matter of priority, the HSE is focusing on an area of the waste industry that has substantially fewer than average accidents associated with it when there are other areas which appear to carry much more serious risk. We find this frankly bizarre.

" CRN UK and its members take matters of health and safety very seriously but the HSE appears to be encouraging the use of one recycling system over another without any consideration for other factors including Best Value, quality of materials, participation rates or wider environmental & social issues. CRN UK sees this as being extraordinarily one-dimensional and prescriptive and believes the HSE should be looking at the various systems with a view to minimising the risks involved with each.

In CRN UK's view, wheelie bin recyclable collections simply push health and safety considerations further down the line and, if priorities for HSE attention must be decided, the situation of MRF workers should be close to the top of the list.

ENDS

Contact: Andy Moore 0117 942 0142

Notes for Editors

Following the accident figures reported in the Bomel Report 2004, CRN UK was pleased that a survey of its members operating kerbside schemes (completed spring 2005) produced figures which were significantly lower. Key figures appear below.

Accident type	Rate over 12 month period per 100,000 workers
	HSE Bomel report waste industry	CRN UK survey kerbside recycling
Overall accident	2500	1469
Fatal injury accident	10	None over 12 month period
Major injury accident	330	105

 

An HSE press release of 1st March 06 listed ten waste management related fatalities occurring in the previous two months. None of these were associated with kerbside box collections.

The HSL report in question appeared on the HSE website at least two weeks before it was exclusively revealed to letsrecycle.com

Background: CRN UK

The Community Recycling Network UK promotes community-based sustainable waste management as a practical and effective way of tackling the UK's growing waste problem and is a national voice for community-based recycling and waste reduction.

It has around 400 members and associates. Full members are involved in not-for-profit, community-based waste minimisation, re-use and recycling schemes. They range from village-based operations to multi-material kerbside collection services covering hundreds of thousands of households in major cities. CRN UK members working in partnership with local authorities and waste management companies have achieved some of the highest recycling rates in the UK. The CRN UK plays an important role in consultations on national, regional and local waste strategies and comments regularly on government policy and strategy documents.

CRN UK advocates source separation as its preferred method of collection. This system achieves far higher participation rates, produces cleaner materials, considers the wider environmental impact of recycling, benefits communities and meets Best Value targets.

As a networking organisation CRN UK takes an active role in H&S issues. This role includes:
· Ensuring its members are represented on relevant H&S boards
· Keeping itself informed on current H&S issues, reports & research
· Researching H&S issues affecting the sector
· Disseminating H&S information to it's members
· Signposting members to H&S information & providing this where appropriate
· Facilitating discussion and information sharing at relevant CRN UK events
· Promoting good practice within the sector

Background: Community Sector
· CRN UK Members deliver kerbside recycling collections to around 2,500,000 (2.5 million) households - over 10% of the UK population.
· The number of community waste sector organisations in the UK is approximately 1250.
· Community organisations collect at least 11% of the municipal waste recycled in England.

The Community Recycling Network is based at Trelawney House, Surrey Street, Bristol, BS2 8PS, tel: 0117 942 0142.
The CRN website is www.crn.org.uk.