Commercial developments in Belfast: supplementary guidance on waste storage

Version one. Published: April 2021

You should use this document along with the Local Government Waste Storage Guide for Northern Ireland. It will give you additional information to help determine the waste storage needs for new commercial developments in Belfast. It does not replace any legislation or remove the need for developers to consult with our Planning or Building Control Services to ensure compliance with relevant policy and legislation.

Contents

1. Introduction
2. Estimating the weekly waste arisings (stage i)
3. Estimating the proportions of each type of waste (stage ii)
4. Decide on a frequency of collection for each waste stream (Stage iii)
5. Decide the type and number of bins required to contain each waste stream (stage iv)
6. Design the bin store to accommodate the bins required (stage v)
7. Worked examples

1. Introduction

The information provided by the Local Government Waste Storage Guide for Northern Ireland (‘the NI Guide’) is quite limited in relation to the needs of specific non-domestic developments. This is due to the wide range of such developments and the various types and amounts of waste they generate. Therefore, this supplementary guidance document has been developed to provide additional support and information to developers and architects, but they may have to undertake additional independent research in order to arrive at a suitable solution.

The basic method is quite straightforward: i. Estimate the total weekly waste arising from the development ii. Estimate how the weekly waste arisings break down (in proportions or percentages) into various individual waste streams (general waste, recycling, glass and food being the obvious categories) iii. Decide on a frequency of collection for each waste stream iv. Calculate the type and number of bins required to contain each waste stream v. Design the bin store to accommodate the bins required

While these have been set out as 5 discrete elements of the design process, in reality there is likely to be some cross-over and inter-dependency between them and they are not stand-alone ‘stages’ of the design process. As we discuss these elements in more detail you will see that sometimes the total weekly waste arising (ostensibly ‘part i’ of the process) is actually arrived at by estimating the ‘make-up’ (rather than the breakdown – ostensibly ‘part ii’) of the wastes arising from the development. Similarly, you will likely experiment with combinations of the frequency of collection (part iii) and the type and number of bins required (part iv) in order to arrive at a satisfactory solution.

Ultimately, what we are interested in is ensuring that sufficient and reasonable consideration has gone into estimating and accommodating the types and amounts of waste that are likely to be generated. Even if this is not entirely accurate, it should ensure that enough space is provided overall to facilitate the various waste streams, and the solution can be ‘fine-tuned’ if necessary when the business is in operation.

This guidance is aimed at commercial/ business rather than industrial or other non-domestic applications, but similar principles will apply to those developments.

This supplementary guidance focuses on ensuring the bin store has sufficient space to accommodate the waste and does not address the wider issues of access and location. Refer to the NI Guide for those considerations.

2. Estimating the weekly waste arisings (stage i)

Estimating the volume of waste which will arise from the development is a fundamental building block of the process. Where the development is mixed-use or a combination of different types of buildings or businesses you should break it down into its constituent elements and address each one in turn.

Use Table 1 on page 13 of the NI Guide to estimate the total waste which will be generated from the development each week.

If the specific business you need is not included in Table 1 of the NI Guide, you can use any classification which is sufficiently similar to the one you need. Businesses which could be described as ‘high street retail’ should allow 10l per sqm of sales area (the same as a shopping centre or department store).

If there is no similar classification then you must develop your own estimate using research or some reasonable rationale. This might mean building up a picture of the types and amounts of waste that are likely to be generated. For example:

• Contact similar businesses or organisations to understand the types and amounts of waste that they produce per week. Keep in mind any relevant differences that might affect this, such as size or footfall or opening hours.
• Consider the number of users/ customers per day or week or hour and estimate what proportion of those customers might reasonably be expected to generate waste and the amounts and types of waste they might reasonably be expected to generate (for example, a train platform might have an estimated 1000 users per day, 20 per cent of which might reasonably be expected to dispose of a coffee cup, plastic bottle or newspaper averaging 0.5l; thus 1000 x 20 per cent x 0.5l = 100l per day = 700l per week).
• Consider the number of users/ customers per day or week or hour and estimate the amounts and types of waste that are associated with providing the service to each of them.
• Consider the number of employees and estimate the amounts and types of waste that they are likely to generate per day or week or hour.
• Inadequate provision for waste will cause ongoing problems for the occupying business so it is important to make realistic estimates.

3. Estimating the proportions of each type of waste (stage ii)

As discussed in section 3 (‘stage i’), when researching and considering the total weekly waste you may have already developed an estimate for the proportions of waste making up the total.

Otherwise, Table 1 below provides a reasonable starting point but you can vary from it as seems reasonable for the business in question.

In general, most other waste streams will be cheaper to dispose of than general waste, so segregating the waste streams can lead to cost savings as well as being environmentally beneficial.

Some waste streams can actually generate an income – although this is subject to market forces and variations. If the proposed business is likely to generate a large amount of a specific waste, it may be worthwhile researching this further with commercial waste operators.

Paragraph 2.5.3 of the NI Guide provides some advice with respect to ensuring proper consideration is given to the legal requirements around waste cooking oil, raw food and hazardous or clinical waste. The requirements around these can also be researched with specialised commercial waste operators.

4. Decide on a frequency of collection for each waste stream (Stage iii)

Unlike household waste collections, which operate on a fixed frequency (weekly or fortnightly), commercial waste collections are more flexible, often operating up to 5 or 6 days per week, and different streams of waste can be collected on different frequencies.

Obviously, you can save space by planning for more frequent collections, but this presents a higher risk approach on two fronts. Firstly, the planned storage space may turn out to be inadequate if your waste estimates have been too conservative, thereby creating ongoing problems for the business. Secondly, allocating less space also exacerbates the problems created by any missed collections. Refer to Para 2.5.1 of the NI Guide, which guards against this by requiring ‘buffer’ space and setting limits to the space that can be saved by employing more frequent collections. You should plan for a weekly collection of all wastes in the first instance and then experiment with more frequent collections to arrive at a robust and reasonable solution.

A number of commercial waste contractors operate in Belfast and Table 2 below summarises the levels of commercial waste collections widely available in the City. Some operators will be able to provide larger containers (skips or roll-on/ roll-off containers, for example) should these be more suitable for the volumes of waste expected.

5. Decide the type and number of bins required to contain each waste stream (stage iv)

Deciding the type and number of bins required will typically happen in conjunction with the consideration of collection frequencies and using the information provided in Table 2 above. The type and number of bins required will vary depending on the frequency of collection, so you will need to experiment until you arrive at a satisfactory combination of collection frequencies and the number of bins.

It is worth mentioning that there are pros and cons to using different sizes of bins. Larger bins obviously hold more waste and can be more cost-effective in terms of collection charges, but:

• they are obviously heavier when filled, which may have an impact on maintenance staff (although the weight is normally regulated by the sizes of bins allowed/ issued for particular wastes)
• depending on the circumstances, they may not offer any appreciable space saving over smaller bins
• they have an impact on the access considerations (wider doors and pathways) as discussed in Chapter 6 of the NI Guide

6. Design the bin store to accommodate the bins required (stage v)

You will need to design a layout which accommodates the types and numbers of bins required and any ‘buffer’ space. Refer to Chapter 4 of the NI Guide for help. You should also refer to the NI Guide to take account of the wider design requirements (that is, consider location and access requirements as well as size).

It is important that the bin store layout demonstrates that each different type of bin can be readily accessed, but it is not essential that every individual bin can be accessed; there is scope to save space if the management plan includes an undertaking that bins will be rotated as necessary by maintenance staff and it is clear that the layout facilitates this.

In a larger complex, it may make sense to have more than one bin store. The logic to this will depend on the particular circumstances. For example, it may be that particular bin stores will be designed to accommodate the waste arising from particular businesses; alternatively, specific bin stores might be designed to accommodate specific types of waste. Keep in mind also that there may be a need to facilitate charging across different businesses.

Note specifically that, where relevant, bin stores for non-domestic waste should be separate to those for household waste, in order to guard against the abuse of household waste collections (which are provided free of charge).

7. Worked examples

Worked example one: Office building for 110 employees

Table 3 shows a straightforward solution using weekly collections for all streams of waste.

Table 4 shows an alternative solution where general waste and dry recycling are collected 2 days and 3 days per week respectively to reduce the number of bins needed and, therefore, the storage space required.

Obviously it is not possible to predict the requirements with total accuracy, but following this method should help you arrive at a reasonable solution with the flexibility for ‘fine-tuning’ when the business is in operation.

Worked example 2: Gym

This is a purely fictitious example for the purposes of demonstrating the method. You should carry out your own appropriate and proportionate research for any developments you are designing.

Let’s take the example of a city centre gym consisting of:

• Office/ reception area for 2 employees
• Small kitchen/ break area for employees only
• Gym area
• Male toilet/ shower/ changing area
• Female toilet/ shower/ changing area

Let’s assume that, based on market research, the gym plans to open:

• 7am–9pm Mon-Fri
• 7am–12pm Saturday and Sunday

Let’s assume that, based on market research, the gym expects to service:

• 120 users per day Mon–Fri and 50 users per day Sat–Sun (total 700 users per week)

To estimate the total waste per week, take each area in turn. Check if there is any similar classification in Table 1 on p13 of the NI Guide. If not, develop your own estimate:

• Office/ reception area for 2 employees:
  • This is sufficiently similar to the office classification on the NI Guide. However, it would be prudent to take into account the gym’s extended operating hours compared with the typical office building.
  • Therefore a reasonable estimate might be 2 employees x 50l x 2 (to account for the extended operating hours) = 200l per week
• Small kitchen/ break area for employees only:
  • As the typical office building will provide similar facilities for employees, it is reasonable to assume that the waste arising from this area is accommodated in the 200l per week calculated above
• Gym area:
  • It seems reasonable to assume that of the 700 users per week, 20 per cent might dispose of a plastic water bottle or similar item averaging 0.5l
  • Therefore, a reasonable estimate might be 700 x 20 per cent x 0.5l = 70l
• Male toilet/ shower/ changing area & Female toilet/ shower/ changing area
  • It seems reasonable to assume that of the 700 users per week, 50 per cent might avail of these facilities and 20 per cent of those might dispose of a shampoo bottle or similar item averaging 0.5l
  • Therefore, a reasonable estimate might be 700 x 50 per cent x 20 per cent x 0.5l = 35l
• This yields a total of 200 + 70 + 35 = 305 litres per week

It appears that the vast majority of the waste generated is likely to be dry recycling, with some general waste, some food and little or no glass. Therefore, it seems reasonable to propose the solution shown in Table 5. Obviously it is not possible to predict the requirements with total accuracy, but following this method should help you arrive at a reasonable solution with the flexibility for ‘fine-tuning’ when the business is in operation.

8. Managing commercial waste

We are committed to minimising waste and optimising recycling in the city, to protect the environment and reduce costs (yours and ours).

Good waste management is also important to help minimise public health risks.

Businesses should take the following steps to make sure that waste is properly managed and recycling is optimised:

1. Manage waste storage areas to ensure that there is always enough space available for the various types of waste and that the different types of bins are always accessible.
2. Manage and update collection contracts to reflect the types and volumes of waste you are producing.
3. Consider your delivery days when scheduling your waste collection days.
4. Provide information and signage for staff about the waste management arrangements and which items should be placed in which bin.
5. Consider ways to reduce the amount of waste you produce.

9. Useful contacts

For more help applying the guidance contact:

• our Planning Service by calling 0300 200 7830, or
• our Building Control Service by calling 028 9027 0650

For advice on managing waste and recycling generated by commercial properties, or about our commercial waste collections, contact our Commercial Waste Service by:

• calling 028 9027 0735
• emailing comwaste@belfastcity.gov.uk