“Abusive relationship” claim over Sheffield Council’s contract with waste firm Veolia

Councillors at a meeting of the Central local area committee (LAC) yesterday (February 25) were challenged over food waste recycling. A member of the public said: “I know that Sheffield City Council has an abusive marriage or relationship with Veolia.

“I wondered if anyone was able to be transparent and honest about this relationship and the long-term contract and when that might end, when changes to waste collection might be enabled.

“I just think it’s bonkers that we’re a green city, an Outdoor City of food growers and outdoor lovers etc but our food waste is either going in the bin or in our own compost bins – that’s fine but not everyone can afford hot composting.” They said that the waste could be turned into compost and sold back to people.

The council ran a pilot scheme involving separate collections of food waste from 8,200 city homes in 2022, collecting 123 tonnes of food waste over 12 weeks. However, plans to introduce the system citywide were shelved because it is not covered by the council waste management contract with Veolia, which runs out in 2038.

Viable

Coun Christine Gilligan Kubo, who is a member of the council waste and street scene policy committee, responded: “Yes, we are in a long-term contract with Veolia.

“That means we can’t take the food waste out of the waste stream because that would decrease the volume of waste going to Veolia and we’re contracted to provide them with a volume so it wouldn’t be financially viable at the moment until the contract ends and we can renegotiate it.”

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Coun Douglas Johnson added that as soon as the waste goes into the bin it becomes Veolia’s property. He said that it is potentially possible for community groups to run a composting system where food waste is diverted before it goes in the bin.

Council leader Coun Tom Hunt said: “The waste that is collected goes to the energy plant and only 1% of goes to landfill as a result of that, which is a marked difference from other cities.”

He said the waste goes into the Bernard Road incinerator and the District Heating Network heats city hospitals and city centre buildings plus homes in central Sheffield, Upperthorpe and Netherthorpe.

Network

“That was a very foresighted decision by the council in the late 1980s,” Coun Hunt added, saying it is the biggest heating network in the country. He said he would “politely challenge the way Veolia was described” because communities and key institutions benefit from the system.

The questioner responded on the issue of particulate matter air pollution coming from the incinerator, saying not enough is being done to tackle it and the respiratory issues it can cause. They added: “I still feel that we are in an abusive relationship with Veolia.”

The meeting, which involved councillors from all four council wards covered by the LAC and members of the public, discussed urban food growing and food systems. It heard from council allotments manager James Musgrave, who oversees 3,778 plos on 78 sites, and Alice Farmery from the Regather Co-op.

Regather grows vegetables on its city organic farm and delivers vegetable boxes to customers, as well as taking part in public food education activities and projects.