REP building sector: local authorities denounce shortcomings in the standard contract calling into question their membership

Three years after the creation of the REP PMCB by the "AGEC" law under the impetus of AMORCE and nearly 6 months after the opening of negotiations on the standard contract and the scale of support, the eco-organizations are proposing a contract negotiated line to line. It still has shortcomings to the detriment of the public service and taxpayers who, faced with a fait accompli, make up for the financing of waste management in place of professionals.

First breach: non-compliance with the law regarding the retroactivity of support paid to communities from January 1, 2023

The regulations are explicit: the separate collection of waste from this sector takes place no later than January 1, 2023. All building waste eligible for support in 2023 must be supported since January 1, 2023. In accordance with the regulations, the deferral the payment of eco-contributions from January 1 to May 1, 2023 decided by the government at the request of companies in the sector must not harm the public service, by depriving it of the financial support to which it is entitled, and ultimately the taxpayers who pay the bill. As such, AMORCE reiterates its request for retroactive support paid to local authorities with a modification to this effect of the specifications that apply to approved eco-organisations.

While it is not acceptable to offer five months of eco-contributions to marketers on the backs of communities, AMORCE is seriously considering the option of legal action to demand compensation for the harm suffered by communities.

Second shortcoming: insufficient cost coverage by eco-organizations and the inability of local authorities to meet the outstanding costs

As a reminder, the decree establishing the sector provides for the payment of support subject to the free recovery of waste falling within the sector. The first version of the support scale presented by the eco-organizations had been unanimously rejected by the associations representing the local authorities. When trading closed in May, the account was still not there. It will have been necessary to wait for the intervention of the Government and the threat that the State itself sets the scale of support to obtain new proposals from eco-organisations and "acceptable" support, even if they do not cover all the costs borne by communities.

Consequently, the problem remains all the more so since these methods, imposing free recovery, weaken the economic model of certain local authorities which will not be able to finance the out-of-pocket costs within the framework of the pricing they currently apply. On this point, AMORCE is asking the General Directorate of Local Authorities (DGCL) so that a response can be provided to the affected communities. In addition, AMORCE asks for the application of the principle of 100% cost coverage on the management of building waste in public recycling centers.

Third failure: the lack of guarantee of a network of collection points for professionals outside the public recycling centers

The last deficiency concerns the network with other collection points apart from the only public recycling centers. As the AGEC law provides for national coverage of collection points and an obligation for points of sale of more than 4.000m2 to take back this waste, the eco-organizations approved in the building waste sector must, by December 31 2023, create 2.400 building waste collection points other than public recycling centers.

This obligation which appears in their approval is therefore an opportunity to continue this transfer to facilities which have better reception conditions and with timetables more suited to the operation of the companies.

This is why AMORCE invites local authorities to condition their signing of the contract only after having obtained guarantees from the eco-organisations of the existence of collection points for existing and operational professionals. The absence of these facilities would indirectly encourage new waves of unauthorized dumping in the territories, the problem of which would inevitably be borne by local taxpayers.

Public recycling centers should no longer be the only solution for absorbing waste from this sector. Faced with these "ghost collections" dedicated to professionals, AMORCE maintains its call on local authorities to collect only waste household materials.