Notes:
Funding:
Three Rivers District Council for the launch of the scheme in April 2002.
The cashback element of the scheme has been
part-funded by Hertfordshire County Council through the Hertfordshire
Waste Partnership since 2003.
Scheme History:
Three Rivers District Council has had its own nappy cash-back scheme since
April 2002. In the first year the scheme only subsidized laundering schemes.
This was not particularly successful and in April 2003 the scheme was
simplified and re-launched, covering home-bought nappies and increasing
its impact significantly. After seeing the success of the scheme in Three
Rivers, Hertfordshire County Council offered to part-fund the scheme across
the entire county, bringing another eight districts across Hertfordshire
on board in April 2004.
The scheme had a new dimension added with the start of the WasteStream
waste minimisation programme, which was rolled out across the district
from June 2003. The limiting of waste collection (effectively to two sacks
of refuse per household per week) and charging for the nappy waste sacks
has encouraged more households to take advantage of the scheme and anecdotal
evidence suggests it has encouraged those parents who might not otherwise
use real nappies.
Scheme Objectives:
To make real nappies more affordable by means of a one-off cash payment
to householders.
To reflect the economic and environmental costs of nappy waste disposal
by charging for the collection of nappy waste that does not fit inside
the provided wheeled bin.
Scheme:
This scheme has been introduced as part of a wider waste minimisation
scheme, “WasteStream”, which involves the provision of recycling
boxes to all houses in the district (for paper, cans, plastic and glass)
and the provision of a medium-sized wheeled bin. Apart from nappy waste
sacks, only refuse left inside the shut wheeled bin is collected.
There are two distinct strands to the nappy waste minimisation scheme.
Firstly, families with just one child in disposable nappies can double
their waste output – therefore sacks for nappy waste are sold for
25p each from Council outlets across the district to deal with this extra
waste. Printed on the nappy waste sacks is text encouraging residents
to contact Three Rivers District Council to find out how to reduce nappy
waste further. Secondly, a nappy cashback scheme, offering a one-off payment
of £40 to those purchasing their own nappies, or £80 for those
joining a laundering scheme for 6 months or more, has also been introduced.
The sale on the nappy sacks subsidizes the cashback scheme. In this way,
Three Rivers District Council is applying a simple “polluter pays
principle” to nappy waste.
Promotion:
Leaflets, local press releases and council publications. Posters and leaflets
have been provided to health centres across the district.
Guides for health professionals (produced by WEN) were also distributed
to midwives across the district and they were given posters and leaflets
and asked to give them to expectant mothers. Watford General Hospital
also displays the scheme leaflets.
‘Get Real’, the Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire Real Nappy
Network, have been instrumental in publicising this scheme, particularly
in helping with display stands in shopping centres and giving interviews
to the local radio and press.
Less advantaged households have been targeted by the use of publicity
displays in the council housing office, based in a deprived part of the
district in an effort to try and widen the scope of the scheme to poorer
households and stress the economic benefits of real nappies.
Vital to publicity of this scheme are the nappy waste sacks themselves,
which encourage residents, including those parents who might not normally
consider using real nappies, to call and discuss how to reduce nappy waste.
Scheme Monitoring:
The number of residents joining the scheme is constantly monitored as
is the number of nappy sacks and income from this.Monitoring the number
of nappy sacks sold per month also allows the Council to assess levels
of nappy waste in the district. Total household waste production in Three
Rivers is monitored to allow the overall impact of the waste minimisation
schemes to be assessed. The entire scheme is subject to annual review
by members.
Achievements:
There are now 52 households on the cashback scheme. This is significant
in a small district, with just over 33,000 households. It is estimated
that this has led to approximately 50 tonnes of waste being diverted from
landfill[1].
Over the last year, 5,940 nappy sacks have been sold, raising £1485
to be invested in the cashback scheme, through which £2040 has been
given out in subsidy.
The impact of the nappy cash back scheme is underlined by the fact that
Three Rivers District Council has the lowest waste production per capita
in Hertfordshire and the second lowest in the Eastern Local Government
Region. For financial year 2003/4, this was 336.42 kg per capita.
Future Plans:
The Three Rivers Nappy Incentive Scheme is currently helping neighbouring
authorities to introduce similar schemes in their area. In addition to
the eight further local authorities across the county that have introduced
cashback schemes, one neighbouring authority in Hertfordshire is now introducing
nappy sacks, as is a neighbouring London borough.
The Scheme also plans to increase co-operation with relevant groups such
as various parent groups and local health professionals to further spread
the success of this partnership.
[1]
Assuming a baby in disposable nappies produces an extra tonne of refuse
over its nappy wearing lifetime. (North West Leicestershire District Council,
www.nwleics.gov.uk)
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