Agenda and minutes

An apology for absence was received from Councillor A Martin

To provide an opportunity for Members and Officers to declare any disclosable pecuniary and non-pecuniary interests in any item on the agenda.

There were no declarations of interest

To provide an opportunity for Members to declare the existence of a party whip in relation to any item on the agenda.

There were no declarations of a party whip

A total period of 15 minutes is allocated for members of the public to make a statement(s) on any matter that falls within the remit of the Committee.

Individual members of the public may speak for up to 5 minutes, but the Chairman will decide how the period of time allocated for public speaking will be apportioned, where there are a number of speakers.

Note: In order for officers to undertake any background research, it would be helpful if members of the public contacted the Scrutiny officer listed at the foot of the agenda, at least one working day before the meeting to provide brief details of the matter to be covered. 

There were no members of the public present wishing to speak

To receive a presentation on what the Council is trying to achieve and the progress made to date.

The Committee received a presentation by M O’Neill, Major Projects Manager and Councillor D Brown (on behalf of Councillor D Stockton) on the energy agenda for Cheshire East. The presentation outlined:

1.    The Cheshire East Energy Framework and Low Carbon Vision centered on three key objectives:

·         Affordable energy

·         Growing the local energy and low carbon economy

·         Independent energy for Cheshire East

2.    The energy market:

·           There was rising fuel poverty nationally and locally. Approximately 19,000 households (11.6%) were in fuel poverty due to rising prices, volatile markets and volatile weather conditions.

·           There is an oligopoly – limited competition and a perceived stranglehold by the big 6.

3.    What are Cheshire East attempting to do?

·         Target and help alleviate fuel poverty in the Borough

·         Deliver Crewe Deep Geothermal Energy project

·         Deliver the Dry Anaerobic digestion, waste from energy project

·         Look into the possibilities of establishing an Energy ASDV

·         Investigate Energy Supply solutions, exploring procurement and delivery options, currently ongoing.

·         Progress other renewable energy projects, such as solar PV

 It was noted that those on a prepaid tariff were paying significantly more for gas and electricity, Cheshire East intended to build a scheme to provide residents with an alternative cheaper offer.

The projects within the energy programme would take between 1 and 3 years to be delivered with some quick wins. The Council required partners for many of the projects as it did not have the expertise in house, several options were still being explored and may not be suitable for the Council. It was agreed that the Committee would receive an update report in 6 months time.

RESOLVED

That an update report be received in 6 months time.

To give consideration to the draft waste strategy 2030.

Consideration was given to the progress made in updating the Waste Strategy 2030. The Waste Strategy had been created around 19 high level objectives, grouped into the following 5 broad categories:

·         Service delivery

·         Waste reduction and reuse

·         Recycling

·         Residual waste management

·         Working together

As well as consulting this Committee, the following consultation had taken place on the high level objectives:

·         2 workshops.

·         Statutory 5 week consultation on the Strategic Environmental Assessment with the Environment Agency, Natural England and English Heritage.

·         4 week public consultation with residents.

·         2 focus groups with residents and interest group representatives.

 It was agreed that the Committee would give consideration to the draft strategy at its meeting scheduled to be held on 2 October prior to it being submitted to Cabinet on 14 October 2014. It was noted that the strategy would highlight possible schemes for implementation but would not be prescriptive and would be open to innovative solutions.

With regard to the dry Anaerobic Digester, Members were pleased to note that waste prevention would be promoted first and energy would only be created from the waste that could not be recycled.

It was noted that due to the ever changing market, the strategy would be reviewed every 5 years. Members were supportive of the questions asked during the consultation.

RESOLVED

That the draft Waste Strategy 2013 be reported back to the Committee at its meeting scheduled to be held on 2 October 2014

To receive the first quarter reports for Ansa and Orbitas

Consideration was given to the first quarterly reports of Ansa and Orbitas. It was noted that the reports had yet to be received by the holding company and that as these were the first reports, comparisons could not be made. Work was still to be done on the reporting format to the Committee, the report would need to be streamlined with only relevant information provided. R Kemp reported that the report was encouraging and that the public had not noticed a change in service.

Members were concerned that Ansa had purchased 20 new vehicles which did not have the Cheshire East Logo on. R Kemp agreed to feed this point back to Ansa.

Concerns were raised regarding the amount of control the Council had over the companies, especially as one of the objectives was to trade, which may have a negative impact on Cheshire East residents. R Kemp assured the Committee that fees and charges and the quality of service were set by the Council and that there were tight controls over the companies.

Members were unclear on the meaning of the sentence on page 14 of the report. R Kemp agreed to seek clarification and report back to the Committee.

RESOLVED

1.    That the report be received.

2.    That the sentence on page 14 of the report be clarified and reported back to the Committee.

To note the current forward plan, identify any new items, and to determine whether any further examination of new issues is appropriate.

Consideration was given to the forward plan. It was agreed that, in future, items which fall within the remit of the Committee should be highlighted.

RESOLVED

1.    That the forward plan be noted

2.    In future, items which fall within the remit of the Committee be highlighted.

To give consideration to the draft work programme

Consideration was given to the work programme. It was noted that the Committee would be visiting the ANSA and Orbitas facilities in October 2014. Member requested that the possibility of moving meetings to Macclesfield be investigated.

RESOLVED

1.    That the work programme be approved

2.    That the possibility of moving meetings to Macclesfield be investigated.