Day 075 - 17 Jan 95 - Page 20
1 kind of issues to do with landfill?
2 A. Yes, it is a matter of interest but, I mean, the
3 concern, the primary -- I mean, I am personally of interest
4 in those issues, but the primary concern of the Tidy
5 Britain Group is to ensure that waste does not get
6 irresponsibly disposed of on to the streets. If the
7 management of waste gives rise to that problem, then it is
8 a matter of interest to us. But, whether or not it is
9 managed by being disposed in landfill or by being dealt
10 with in some other matter, that is not a matter of primary
11 concern to the Tidy Britain Group.
12
13 Q. But, speaking personally, when you say or when the European
14 proposal says that it is a priority to reduce, as far as
15 possible, the volume of the waste stream, then one of the
16 concerns will be the management of the waste when it is
17 finally disposed of or put somewhere, whether it is in a
18 landfill or incinerated, yes?
19 A. Yes.
20
21 Q. Are you aware of the problems to do with landfill
22 management?
23 A. Yes.
24
25 Q. Could you indicate some of the problems?
26 A. Well, I think that -- I mean, I do not think they yet
27 apply to this country but some of the problems that are
28 associated with landfill are what people perceive to be a
29 lack of space in which to dispose of waste in that way, and
30 the importance of managing waste dealt with in that way so
31 that there are no adverse environmental consequences. That
32 is, obviously, a proper consideration of management.
33
34 But, my own view is that there will need to be a
35 significant shift in thinking from regarding waste as a
36 problem to seeing it as a resource, and once that mental
37 shift takes place, then the way in which we treat waste
38 will become very different. The sorts of problems that are
39 currently perceived to be very great will actually shift
40 and alter.
41
42 Q. There is a large number of landfill sites in this country,
43 yes, full of collected waste. Are people that live near
44 those landfill sites happy to have waste dumps or -----
45
46 MR. RAMPTON: My Lord, I do not believe that Professor Ashworth
47 can answer that.
48
49 MR. MORRIS: I do not know. Is it something that they have
50 contacted the Tidy Britain Group or something in your
51 experience?
52
53 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Have you experienced that?
54
55 THE WITNESS: Which question is it you are asking me?
56
57 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Have you experience of complaints of people
58 who live near landfill sites complaining about them?
59 A. Not to the Tidy Britain Group, no.
60
