Councillors raise concerns about waiver scheme

CONCERNS regarding the position of former Kerry County Council Waste Disposal Service customers on waivers have been raised by an elected member of the Local Authority.

At the January meeting of the county council, Cllr Michael O’shea asked County Manager Tom Curran what steps the Local Authority would take to ensure that vulnerable members of society would not be penalised financially when the waiver system for waste disposal ceases in February 2013.

Cllr O’shea pointed out that 2,131 people are currently availing of waivers which grant them a reduced rate for waste collection. These waivers will cease to exist following the county council’s decision last year to sell their waste collection service to private firm, KWD.

“I would like to ask what steps will be put in place to help these people after 2012. I would also like to know if resources will be put in place to help people who availed of the waiver scheme and will the council be looking for an increase in their Local Government Fund to help these people,” Cllr O’shea said.

“A lot of people have come to myself and to other councillors in relation to what will happen with the waiver scheme,” he added.

In reply, Ger O’brien, Head of Corporate Affairs, Kerry County Council said the terms of sale of the council’s waste collection business stipulated that the current waiver terms would continue for current waiver customers until February 2013.

“Management are satisfied that market forces and competition will ensure that prices will remain competitive after the 2013 date. Over the past year, many customers on waivers left the council service in order to use private contractors whose charges were more financially attractive,” Mr O’brien said.

The county council official stated that the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Affairs had initiated a review of Waste Management policy. This review had included the publication last June of a discussion document on Household Waste Collection Markets which had a section on meeting the needs of low income households. Ger O’brien said it was expected that a policy paper would be published this year.