| North Somerset Council has approved proposals to develop a new waste depot and household waste recycling centre that will secure the future of waste and recycling services for residents for decades to come. At its Full Council meeting last night (Tuesday 8 September), councillors approved funding to progress the next stage of the project, including detailed design work and planning preparation for a modern facility that will bring together the council’s waste operations for the whole of North Somerset and provide a replacement recycling centre for Weston and the surrounding area. The proposal responds to significant challenges facing the council’s current waste infrastructure, changing national legislation and the council’s ambition to see even more recycled and reused. One of the existing waste depots operates from a site where the council has limited security of tenure and is too small to cope with household growth, while the current household waste recycling centre is no longer considered suitable for meeting the long-term needs of a growing population. The new facility will provide a modern base for waste collection vehicles and operational staff, improve the handling and transfer of waste and recycling materials, and deliver an upgraded recycling centre for local residents. The council has undertaken extensive work to test options, assess future requirements and develop robust cost estimates. This has included benchmarking against comparable waste infrastructure projects delivered by other local authorities, detailed cost validation work and the appointment of specialist advisers with experience of delivering complex waste facilities. The indicative budget for the project also includes a substantial contingency to reflect ongoing volatility in the construction market and ensures the council takes a prudent and realistic approach to financial planning. Recent years have seen construction costs rise significantly across the sector, particularly for specialist infrastructure projects, driven by increases in labour, materials and regulatory requirements. The council has therefore built strong processes into the programme to ensure value for money is achieved at every stage. Councillor Annemieke Waite, North Somerset Council’s Cabinet Member for Climate, Waste and Sustainability, said: “Waste and recycling services are among the most important services we provide for residents every day, and we need infrastructure that is fit for the future. “Our existing arrangements are not sustainable in the long-term. We need a modern facility that enables us to continue delivering reliable services, improve operational efficiency and meet future environmental and legislative requirements. “This is about protecting a vital public service for the future while ensuring we achieve the best possible value for North Somerset taxpayers.” Councillor Steve Bridger, North Somerset Council’s Cabinet Member for Digital, AI and Service Transformation (with responsibility for assets), said: “We recognise that the scale of investment required is significant. However, we have undertaken detailed benchmarking with other councils that have recently delivered similar facilities, brought in specialist expertise and rigorously tested our assumptions and cost estimates. “We have also included a substantial contingency within the indicative budget to ensure we are planning prudently and responsibly. The reality is that construction costs for major infrastructure projects have increased considerably in recent years, and we want residents to be confident that our plans are based on robust evidence and realistic assessments of what these facilities now cost to deliver.” The next phase of work will include developing detailed designs, progressing planning requirements and refining business cases before any future decision is taken on the full construction programme.  |