THURROCK Council leader Cllr Andrew Jefferies has outlined how he believes changes to the borough’s domestic waste collection services will “help improve the customer experience and optimise performance”. reports the Local Democracy Reporter.
Speaking at a full council meeting on Wednesday, Cllr Jefferies gave details of a new paid-for garden waste collection and a food waste collection.
Cllr Jefferies said: “It is the intention of the council as part of delivering its waste and recycling strategy to make changes to how it delivers its waste collection services from Monday, 8 April.
“These changes are in line with delivering the council’s strategy and corporate objectives.
“The changes ensure the council can continue to deliver its waste and recycling collections services while addressing current legislation to enable us to reduce our carbon footprint. The first change will see the council turn to alternate weekly collections for our non-recycling collection service.”
He added: “We, like other authorities, are introducing a chargeable garden waste subscription service and will be one of the last to do so in Essex. The cost of the subscription will be £80 a year with an additional bin subscription at the same address charged at £50 per bin.”
The changes are part of budget cuts announced in November and are set to save the council more than £2.5 million.
In preparation for these changes Cllr Jefferies said the waste teams are reviewing processes and procedures and making round-scheduling changes.
The council said it had taken on board residents’ comments, captured during a consultation to “help improve the customer experience and optimise performance”.
Service information booklets containing details of the changes, how to subscribe to the new garden waste service and information on what can and can’t be recycled will be delivered to all households in March.
Cllr Jefferies said: “In September we will be launching a weekly kerbside food waste collection service. Distribution of the food caddies will begin in the third quarter of this year. The service is scheduled to start on Monday, September 2.
“These changes will allow the council to free up its resources going forward to build on the improvements made to date whilst educating residents on how to reduce their waste to ensuring continuous improvements which in the long run will be for the benefit of the residents we all serve and the general environment of Thurrock.”
Thurrock council charge us enough for a poor service as it is. Perhaps if they had not invested poorly in the past they would not now be taking more money than they should. The bin collection in Thurrock is very poor with the bins not often emptied on time so I can not see by charging extra how this will change for the better.
People especially pensioners are not going to be able to pay to have garden wast taken away that means more bonfires which will smoke out the neighbours as garden waste does not burn well ….so much for the environment and all the people in the area with lung and chest complaints …… and what exactly does the council mean by an additional bin subscription of £50.00 ?????? It is going to cost the council much more as the fly tipping is going to increase big time….. what non forwards looking person / persons dreamed up all this rubbish!!!!
This guy is taking us for mugs.
Boasting the new plan will save TBC £2.5m, means the residents will foot the bill with all these extra proposed charges.
I am a pensioner, we both have blue badges and limited mobility.
Currently we struggle to put all the recycling waste into one bin through the two weeks, often getting my grandson to tread it down, garden waste I can get 6 – 8 weeks cuttings before it needs emptying, will they pro-rata the cost. There will be those that choose to fly tip, has the cost of this been factored in, I doubt it, if it has why should we pay for it, already paying in excess CT for the brown envelope brigade to benefit from the massive fraud that has not been criminally investigated, WE ARE THE MUGS!
It’s time to get Labour in
Why are we having to wait til September for the food waste collection, it should have been implemented with the other changes. This means throughout the summer we are going to have stinking, fly infested green bins because they will only be emptied every 2 weeks. Thurrock Council your a joke.