Luke Prazsky, Service Director – Waste Resource Management for Wardell Armstrong, asks: can we do more to decarbonise the waste vehicle fleet faster, and what would need to change if we did?
The UK Government has set its target for reaching net zero emissions by 2050. This is going to take a determined and transformative approach with change needed across everything we do as a country.
I can’t help but feel, given the scale of the challenge, there is a general expectation that we will miss this target. And by a country mile.
I fear local authorities are also falling behind in their progress compared to private industry…
I fear local authorities are also falling behind in their progress compared to private industry with the main reason being budgetary restrictions. And that lack of commitment to improvement seems to generally be accepted as ok.
But I also feel we underestimate the scale of the benefits that could be realised by local authorities. One area that could deliver significant gains is decarbonising the fleets that collect and transport our waste and recyclables. That can also be coupled with decarbonising the mobile plant that operates on each waste site.
The drivers are clear for all to see – local authorities are declaring climate emergencies left right and centre, air quality is increasingly being recognised for its importance to human health (and potential income stream through ULEZ schemes) and fossil fuel prices are going through the roof.
Innovation
We live at a time of exciting innovation in low carbon transport technologies which is bringing alternative decarbonised power options including electricity (ideally renewable), hydrogen and biofuels.
I can understand there being some hesitancy in deciding which technology to back as local authorities will want to ensure they are as future proofed as possible, in light of the inevitable technological advances and decreasing cost in coming years.
But here is the thing, if we wait and wait to see which option is best, we continue to drift and ultimately go backwards. So, should local authorities be forced to make the changes as soon as possible?
It would take investment from central government, but they defined the target and need to put their money where their mouth is.
The finance required will not just be limited to procuring new fleets but also the associated infrastructure needed to support them, including but not limited to the numerous charging points, charging areas/sites if electric power is the route taken.
There are also opportunities for council buildings, and not just those housing waste facilities, to expand solar PV provision on the rooves and also potentially neighbouring land, so generating additional renewable energy to power the new fleet, delivering energy self-sufficiency in-house.
Route optimisation
These new fleets will also require long standing practices to be reconsidered, for example the collection routes – you would be surprised how many local authorities have not reviewed route optimisation for a number of years. Given the constant development of housing stock there are significant improvements to be had without much effort.
Greener fleets might well also deliver lower transport distances per vehicle round and need longer before they are ready to go back into service. This might require additional transfer stations – but maybe the sites could be smaller as a result.
The challenge of upgrading each collection fleet is probably simpler for local authorities that outsource environmental services as contractor specifications can be written for the private sector to deliver against, subject to the affordability.
Furthermore, anticipated changes in waste streams will need to be factored in when defining the structure of a new vehicle fleet. Food waste collections from 2023 will likely mean specialist collection vehicles or the adaptation of existing vehicle designs to allow this waste stream to be collected efficiently.
The challenge of upgrading each collection fleet is probably simpler for local authorities that outsource environmental services as contractor specifications can be written for the private sector to deliver against, subject to the affordability.
However, this may be restricted to re-procurement timescales, and, with the increasing prevalence of local authorities taking these services in-house, it will mean they need more resources themselves to make it work effectively.
Incentivisation
My final question is whether local authorities should be incentivised to make the change sooner than the planned end of fleet life they are currently working to?
Challenges associated with the availability of suitable vehicles, the need for infrastructure development, training of staff, not to mention the fact that EV vehicles have a bigger carbon footprint than conventional fuelled vehicles from their manufacturing, leads me to think a phased and gradual approach is likely to be the most successful, however, if we don’t start now, we are going to miss an amazing opportunity to achieve real carbon improvements.
If you’ve got something to say about this feature or would like to submit your own for consideration, email the editor at darrel.moore@ciwm.co.uk