Council Gets Tough On Extra Green Bin Charge Evaders

Above: Green waste wheelie bins are emptied in
West Lindsey, each extra bin costs £27.90 per annum.

Residents throughout West Lindsey who are using more than one green garden waste bin could soon be facing an additional bill.

When the council's popular Triple Bin refuse collection system was introduced almost two years ago everyone in the district became entitled to have one green bin emptied for free. Additional bins could be provided but there would be a charge. But now the Council has been alerted to the fact that some properties are leaving out more than one green bin for collection even though no payment has been made for additional bins.

Waste Services Manager, Mr. Glyn Pilkington, said:

"Letters are going out to residents explaining that additional bins have to be paid for at the current charge of £27.90 a year or the bin will have to be returned to us.

"We appreciate that some householders may have been getting the service unknowingly. For example there may have been two green bins at the property when new occupiers moved in or an extra bin may even have been delivered to the property when we rolled out the Triple Bin collection scheme.

"The reason for the extra bin being there is really not the point. What we are trying to do is make sure that we are fair to everyone who is paying for an extra bin and to do this we are asking for a payment from everyone who has more than one bin or the bin will have to be returned to us."

The letter to residents tells householders that if they want to continue using the extra bin they should ring the Council's Customer Service Team on (01427) 676676 to arrange for a payment to be made.

If the Council does not get any response to its letters it will assume that people want to keep the extra bin and an invoice will be sent out. Mr Pilkington added:

"People who want to return the additional green should also ring the Customer Service Team and we will arrange free collection."

West Lindsey's Green Bin Service May Be Reduced

Green Wheelie Bin collections could change this winter in a bid to cut costs at West Lindsey District Council, the Lincolnshire Echo reports today.
Apparently, discussions have begun with staff about potential changes to West Lindsey District Council's triple bin collection system. The scheme, which brought the authority in line with other neighbouring councils which collect waste on a fortnightly basis, was introduced last year and represented a compromise for the ruling Conservative group on the council. In their 2008 manifesto they committed to 'deliver a free green bin to everyone who wants one' but following the loss of several million pounds in Icelandic Banks - following the previous Liberal Democrats' Treasury Management Strategy - the had to sacrifice continuing with weekly refuse collection.

If changes are approved, green bins for garden waste would be collected monthly instead of fortnightly between November and February and the bi-weekly service would resume in March.

It is understood that maintenance staff from the council who are left with a reduction in workloads would be asked to help with other jobs during the winter.

A public consultation is expected to be held later this year.

The paper reports that council spokesman Mr. Geoff O'Neill said green bins were normally emptier during the winter months and any changes could allow the authority to save cash.

All councils are trying to make savings ahead of cuts in Government grants.

Triple Bin Success For Recycling Rates

West Lindsey District Council's recycling rate has shot up to over 50% since the introduction of the new triple bin collections and the council claims the dramatic success is all down to the way residents have embraced the scheme.

The council introduced a district-wide free green waste collection service and alternate weekly collections of refuse and recycling in September last year following a successful pilot scheme in Caistor, Keelby and Cherry Willingham.

Since then not only has amount of recycling increased by almost 25% compared to the same period last year, but landfill is down too. In the period from September to February the Council sent 7,076 tonnes of material to landfill - 1,916 tonnes less than that sent the year before. That's the equivalent weight of ten jumbo jets that have been saved from landfill in just five months!

The council now hopes to see its recycling rate improve even further as residents adapt to the new scheme.

Chairman of the Community and Waste Committee, Cllr. Mrs. Irmgard Parrott, Conservative (Cherry Willingham) said:

"While these are early figures, it is certainly encouraging to see that recycling has gone up significantly after only a few months of the changes being introduced. Hopefully as the scheme beds in and residents use their green bins throughout the summer for the first time, these figures will show an even bigger increase.

"It is vital that as many people as possible recycle garden waste because if it finds its way into a landfill site it becomes a major source of methane which is a damaging greenhouse gas."

West Lindsey's recycling spokesman Mr. Steve Leary said that the Council had achieved the dramatic increase by working with residents.

"We do understand that this was a major change for everyone and that change can sometimes bring about concerns. That's why we had a dedicated team of recycling advisors visiting homes throughout the district hopefully explaining all that you need to know about the new way of doing things.

"I'd like to personally thank residents for their recycling efforts so far. Together we have now achieved a recycling rate of more than 50%. It really is so important that we continue to safeguard resources and avoid government fines by diverting more waste away from landfill."

Chief Executive of Local Council Sees the Positives of 2009

The Market Rasen Mail is reporting that West Lindsey District Council’s Chief Executive has said that the investigation into the council's planning department and the Audit Commission report into the governance of the council, has deflected attention from the many positives achieved in 2009.

Mr. Duncan Sharkey, who leaves the authority for a new post in March, is quoted as saying that it would be

"some time before we are able to repair the damage"

done to the council from the investigations but they were

"working hard"

to do so, and cited positives achieved by the Conservative-led administration.

• The introduction of the Triple Bin refuse collection scheme which had taken the recycling rate to more than 50 per cent.
• The first council in the country to reach the achieving level of the Equality Framework for Local Government.
• A new leisure contract giving better value from the leisure centre.
• A restructuring of the council which means the council tax increase last April was 1.8 per cent and this year will be less than 1 per cent.
• Significant improvements in the housing department.
• Saved the Trinity Arts Centre in Gainsborough.
• One of the first councils to draw down money from the Future Jobs Fund to help young people into work.
• Working with the police, rewarded youngsters for work like litter picking and removing graffiti.