Repeal of SWMP legislation may save them

Having participated in and read the resulting report from the Government repeal of the Site Waste Management Plan regulations, I think this is right as the EA do not have resources to regulate legal requirements, some of which are rarely met.

SWMP could be deemed to have been doomed from the start, being rolled out to environmental specialists in construction. Being one myself, we don’t

• Estimate & cost

• Design

• Procure

• Project Manage

All of which are functions which are vital for SWMP in their current format to work. Over complicated plan templates have not helped as, during the recession, contractors had to be lean on staff resources and SWMP could be passed to site managers to complete who were at the end of the design chain.

The over onerous legal requirements, such as having to review the SWMP at least every 6 months and having a post completion review have found difficult for the industry to manage and have proven, as a lead auditor, inevitable audit nonconformities.

However, I am optimistic that contractors, without the legal burden, will embrace SWMP as a useful tool for planning and implementing effective waste management. A concern is that many will leave the plan behind when the legislation is repealed in December 2013, but from reading the Government response it appears that larger main contractors and clients will specify SWMP are still used, so please don’t scrap them in your organisation.