Green waste clean-up statement
The following is a statememt from Cllr James McKay, Cabinet Member for a Green, Safe and Smart City, on the city-wide collection of green waste, which occured at the weekend (May 17-18):
“The council has had to make hard decisions about budget savings as a result of central government cuts.
“The decision to charge for green waste helps to protect other front-line services because we would have needed to find £2.5million of savings from elsewhere in the council's budget if we had carried on subsidising the old service's collection costs.
“This is the first year of the new chargeable service, so we are currently in a transitional period from the old to the new scheme. As with any new service it takes time for residents to get used to it.
“However, despite widespread publicity about the new service, including writing to every household as part of the Council Tax billing process this March, it is clear that not every household has got the message and some have continued to put out their green waste for collection.
“In this transitional year we need to think about those residents who have paid for the new collection service, but also about maintaining the cleanliness of local neighbourhoods where residents either haven't got the message or have decided to ignore it.
“There is a fine balance to be drawn between maintaining the confidence of our valued paying customers and ensuring that local neighbourhoods don't deteriorate to such an extent where there is an overall detrimental effect on the city.
“We are looking at a limited response in this transitional period and we will continue to reinforce the message that the free collection service has now stopped and that the dumping of green waste is an offence.”
As the council have a duty to collect fly tipped waste wont that mean all dumped green waste that cannot be attached to an owner will be collected ? What is the incentive to pay for a green waste collection?
After reading this statement and from what i have seen and heard from a dustman today 20/05/214 i am very angry. I have paid for my wheelie bin while others have left out green bags for weeks littering the place. Then Saturday 17th May 2014 the dustman were paid double time to go around and pick up the green waste bags ,that are not paid for. This brings me to think whats going on with the council tax rises late delivery of green wheelie bin and now people having there green stuff taken away for free. I feel i am owed a free collection or i will start dumping bags out on street and wait for free delivery.
I agree the council had to take this route of paid green waste collection in order to make savings for certain crucial frontline services, but they needed to set up a robust monitoring system to ensure that regular offenders are tackled on the stop which will deter them from re-offending. If they are not confronted they will continue to do what they are doing, and its really not fair for people who have paid for this service. I think a sort of neighbourhood watch is set up so that neighbours report to council as soon as they see people dumping their waste on the kerbs, hopefully this should work, such irresponsible citizens should be named and shamed !!
So 6.5% of brummines opt to pay ridiculous charges in my very poor mind it means 93.5% will have to get rid of their own green waste.
One way would have to encouraged people to make their own compost however for people like me who want to get rid of nasty weeds with pernicious root systems mainly coming in from neighbour then a trip to the tip has been necessary on 3 occasions this spring. Each time you take your life in your hands trying to get into Lifford lane tip, you create loads of pollution even with a green car and when you get there you will find the same number of bins for green waste as before! Surely someone should have been able to work out more green waste facilities were required or is this rocket science?
Time some heads at the top rolled or is it just the labour council trying to show the conservative cuts at their worst?
Its a bit annoying to have paid for the wheelie bin and then see a free collection, but in a way I am paying for the convenience of the bin as opposed to the mess of the bags. Some residents just dont like change, some just dont pay any attention to the news and some are just bloody- minded. In comparison to the cuts being inflicted nationally on a wide range of people, it’s nothing really is it.