BETTER environmental services at no greater cost could be produced by a link-up of three district councils.

Durham City, Easington and Sedgefield councils are working on a concordat to jointly provide services such as refuse collection, street cleaning, recycling and landscape management.

The councils said together they could achieve economies of scale that would provide savings to be invested in new or improved services.

Officials said improvements could be made by adopting the best practice within the three authorities.

There is also the possibility of setting up an arms-length company to run the project and involvement by the private sector.

Sue Pitts, the Liberal Democrat leader of the city council, said: "We are not looking at any job losses.

"It is exciting and it is fairly groundbreaking. It is intended to provide extra services at no extra cost, which is quite an amazing thing to attempt to do.

"By joint working and procurement we will provide all the things we currently provide and be able to do more things or do things we are already doing now but better.''

The councils have been working on the idea for about two years but there is still a long way to go and, as yet, no date for the project to come into operation.

The project is seen as a way of achieving higher environmental standards set by the Government and fulfilling the councils' hopes for improving the environment.

Councillor Pitts said companies could be used to deliver some services but new legislation may allow the councils to borrow money so private sector involvement was not needed.

She said the project not connected with the campaign for unitary council status.

Consultants PriceWaterhouseCoopers have been hired to look into the combining of services, the savings it would achieve and the management structure needed.

Consultations will be carried out with "stakeholders'' including workforces, unions and parish councils in the three districts.

The concordat was discussed yesterday at an event with speakers from the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, six North-East companies and development agencies.