Decision details

To approve the process for establishing a new contractual arrangement, to operate from October 2014 onwards, for the composting of garden waste collected by Sefton Council and by other Merseyside waste collection authorities.

The Cabinet considered the report of the Director of Street Scene which provided details ofan EU-compliant tender exercise to be conducted, in collaboration with other Merseyside Councils for the provision of a green (garden) waste composting outlet.

Decision Made:

That:

(1)       the Director of Street Scene be authorised to conduct an OJEU Open Procedure tender exercise, in collaboration with other Merseyside Councils and with Sefton being the lead authority for the tender exercise, for a new contract to run for a period of two years from 1 November  2014, with the option of three one-year extensions;

(2)       approval be given to the basis of evaluation of tenders as set out in paragraph 2.2 of the report; and

(3)       the Director of Street Scene be authorised to approve the contract award to the highest scoring tenderer in accordance with the approved basis of evaluation and to report on the outcome to the Cabinet Member for Communities and Environment.

Reasons for Decision:

The current contract held by White Moss Horticulture expires on 31October 2014. The undertaking of a collaborative tender exercise with other Merseyside Councils for the new contract would realise benefits and economies of scale by combining the different requirements under the one contract and it would be required to follow an OJEU Open Procedure in collaboration with the Merseyside Councils.

Alternative Options Considered and Rejected:

If the collaborative tendering process was not undertaken, Sefton Council would be required to undertake such an exercise on its own in order to have a contracted disposal outlet in place by November 2014. It is likely that the disposal cost per tonne would increase if the Council were to undertake the exercise alone.