South Oxfordshire District Council is considering removing mixed recycling bring banks from locations across the district as they have ‘become a nuisance, attracting illegal fly-tipping and creating an eyesore’, according to the council. It also says that fly-tipping and misuse of bring banks means much of the recycling becomes contaminated with non-recyclables and as a result often ends up having to be taken to landfill.
The council has suggested that the ‘banks are no longer needed because residents can already recycle all the items collected at the banks at the kerbside through their wheeled bins and can put any extra out in clear bags or cardboard boxes next to them on their usual collection day’. With this in mind, it is proposing to remove the mixed recycling bins at bring bank sites, but keep bins used for textiles and small electrical items which can't go into household bins.
Removing the bins would also save the council around £20,000 a year.
This is not the first time the council has moved to remove banks following misuse. The council says a pilot removal of banks at sites in Didcot and Watlington in 2012 was a ‘success’ and didn’t cause any problems or complaints.
The council is asking residents what they think of the idea to remove the banks. They can leave their comments on the council’s consultation website
Councillorr David Dodds, cabinet member of recycling and waste, said: “It’s a shame we have to consider this course of action – fly-tipping and misuse by a minority undoes the good work of most of our residents. However, the banks are ultimately unnecessary as we offer a mixed recycling service at the kerbside for residents and they can put out as much as they like. Our neighbours in the Vale [of Whitehorse] removed theirs without causing an increase in fly-tipping elsewhere, so it shouldn’t cause us any problems – we look forward to hearing what our residents think.”
The consultation closes on 20 October.
South Oxfordshire's move is the latest in a trend developing in some authorities to remove bring banks, including Dorset Waste Partnership and North Hertfordshire District Council.
Read more about the use of bring banks.
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