Agenda item

(g)       notes that:-

(i)         food waste is a hugely important economic and environmental issue for the country, with approximately over 600 tonnes thrown away by Sheffield households each year;

(ii)        Sheffield has a recycling rate for household waste of 30.7% which is well below the highest performing English local authority of 65%; and a radical improvement in the City’s recycling rate will therefore require the collection and recycling of food waste; and

(iii)       knowledge exchange and best practice will allow Sheffield businesses to innovate and create more jobs in our future green economy; and

(h)       resolves to:-

(i)         explore measuring food waste in all Council premises and support measures to communicate the importance of reducing food waste;

(ii)        use best practice with borough councils in London and authorities such as Peterborough, to define a metric for progress made in the transition to circular economy;

(iii)       develop proposals to introduce a pilot scheme for the collection of food waste from households to identify the issues and opportunities in a wider roll-out across the whole city, with the intention to roll out domestic food waste collection across the city to produce biogas energy via anaerobic digestion as soon as is practicable;

(iv)       support innovation and good practice through shared learning and networking among SMEs and organisations with nascent technology and ideas, and identify regulatory barriers with businesses and resolve where possible;

(v)        support local businesses to transition to closed loop systems and eco-design approaches using the RESolve framework, with an emphasis on production of products that can last several lifecycles, that are easily repaired and are designed for easy disassembly and remanufacture;

(vi)       write to the Secretary of State for Environment and Rural Affairs and the Chancellor of the Exchequer to ask them to introduce environmental taxation and introduce tax credits to incentivise efficiency of resource use, longer lifespan and remanufacture of products to reduce commercial and domestic waste; and

(vii)      in consultation with local businesses, trial a reusable coffee cup scheme in Sheffield city centre, involving a cash deposit for a reusable coffee cup and a station where drops can be dropped for reuse.

8.5

After contributions from two other Members, and following a right of reply from Councillor Martin Smith, the amendment moved by Councillor Mark Jones was put to the vote and was carried.

8.6

The amendment moved by Councillor Paul Turpin was then put to the vote and was negatived.

8.6.1

(NOTE: The Deputy Lord Mayor (Councillor Gail Smith) and Councillors Simon Clement-Jones, Bob Pullin, Richard Shaw, Bob McCann, Tim Huggan, Mohammed Mahroof, Joe Otten, Colin Ross, Martin Smith, Vic Bowden, Roger Davison, Barbara Masters, Sue Alston, Andrew Sangar, Cliff Woodcraft, Ian Auckland, Sue Auckland, Steve Ayris, Kevin Oxley, Penny Baker, Vickie Priestley, Alan Hooper and Mike Levery voted for paragraphs (h) to (j), and voted against paragraph (g) of the amendment, and asked for this to be recorded.)

8.7

The amendment moved by Councillor Andrew Sangar was then put to the vote and was carried, except for paragraphs (g)(ii) and (h)(iii), (vi) and (vii) of the amendment, which were negatived.  Paragraphs (g)(i) and (iii)  and (h)(i), (ii), (iv) and (v) of the amendment were carried on the basis that they were to be additional paragraphs to the Substantive Motion.

8.8

The original Motion, as amended, was then put as a Substantive Motion in the following form and carried:-

RESOLVED: That this Council:-

(a)

notes that Sheffield City Council has declared a Climate Emergency;

(b)

notes the commitment shown by the Council to reducing waste, and that this issue will be strenuously looked at by the forthcoming Citizens’ Assembly, representing all parts of the city, to guide our way towards Sheffield becoming zero carbon;

(c)

notes the recently set-up taskforce to consider ways in which schools in the city can collectively, and as individual organisations, move towards becoming carbon neutral and how they can reuse, reduce and recycle waste to minimise their impact on the environment;

(d)

believes that with the right support, British businesses have the opportunity to be world leaders in green and sustainable technology;

(e)

believes successful economies of the future will be those which adopt the ‘circular economy’ approach, which designs out waste, is regenerative by design and is powered by renewable energy; at its heart is the idea of reducing resource use, reusing resources and materials that are in circulation in the economy and recycling as a last resort, which will help us meet our sustainable development goals;

(f)

believes a prime example of this is the forthcoming EU ‘right to repair’ legislation which will require manufacturers to design longer-lasting products and make spare parts readily available in a push to reduce waste and increase opportunities for small businesses in the after-sales support sector;

(g)

believes that Sheffield can have a huge and positive role to play in the transition to a circular economy;

(h)

therefore resolves to consult with local universities, charities and Ellen MacArthur Foundation Knowledge Partner organisations, that have experience of delivering circular economy projects with businesses and local authorities, and bring the following to the Green City Partnership and the forthcoming Citizens’ Assembly to consider:-

(i)           the introduction of local deposit return and refill schemes for all food and drinks containers; and

(ii)          making ‘evidence of environmental improvement’ a requirement for all businesses and organisations seeking grant funding or any other form of financial support from the Council;

(i)

instructs the Executive Director, Place, to carry out a full study that quantifies the potential benefits of the circular economy approach to the city and report back to full Council, within six months, and that this evidence base should inform the Citizens’ Assembly, along with consultation with local businesses, as to how they could do more to assist the circular economy, and how we as a Council can assist in this;

(j)

notes that:-

(i)        food waste is a hugely important economic and environmental issue for the country, with approximately over 600 tonnes thrown away by Sheffield households each year; and

(ii)       knowledge exchange and best practice will allow Sheffield businesses to innovate and create more jobs in our future green economy; and

(k)

resolves to:-

(i)        explore measuring food waste in all Council premises and support measures to communicate the importance of reducing food waste;

(ii)       use best practice with borough councils in London and authorities such as Peterborough, to define a metric for progress made in the transition to circular economy;

(iii)      support innovation and good practice through shared learning and networking among SMEs and organisations with nascent technology and ideas, and identify regulatory barriers with businesses and resolve where possible; and

(iv)      support local businesses to transition to closed loop systems and eco-design approaches using the RESolve framework, with an emphasis on production of products that can last several lifecycles, that are easily repaired and are designed for easy disassembly and remanufacture.