The Localism Bill will amend the Climate Change Act 2008 to remove the powers that allow Local Authorities to pilot waste reduction schemes including charging householders based on how much they throw away.

The changes will allegedly make it easier for Local Authorities to bring in schemes to reward people who produce less waste. Decisions on any reward schemes are best made by councils in consultation with local residents and with careful consideration of value for money, Defra said.

The Environment Secretary also announced that Defra will not be further considering Bristol City Council's current proposal to pilot a waste reduction scheme under the Climate Change Act.

Prime Minister David Cameron is instead championing initiatives such as that by Windsor and Maidenhead Council as a "vanguard community" exemplifying his Big Society initiative, highlighting its scheme to reward householders for their recycling efforts.

The Climate Change Act actually states that it can both charge for waste arisings and reward performance. The wording is that it "confers powers to make schemes for providing financial incentives to produce less domestic waste and to recycle more of what is produced".

It enabled five councils to come forward to run pilot schemes. It also contained a provision to allow councils to rebate residents, through their Council Tax or "other payment methods" with a financial incentive for recycling.

Bristol council's is an opt-in scheme. The council is still confident that it would prove more effective than comparative reward schemes.

Councillor Gary Hopkins, executive member for strategic transport, waste and targeted improvement, said: "it has not been realised that our way of doing things is more effective. We need to reward not fine and a reward scheme based on waste reduction is that way."

http://tinyurl.com/5kq45o