DCLG criticises councils for green waste charges

Councils which impose charges for green waste collections could risk reducing recycling rates by putting residents off recycling, according to the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG).

Meanwhile, the TaxPayers Alliance has also criticised the trend, after a number of local authorities announced plans to switch from free to paid-for green waste collection services in recent months.

These include Sheffield city council, which says it is no longer able to afford a free service due to government budget cuts and Monmouthshire county council in South Wales which is seeking to make savings of around 16 million over the next four years.

Speaking to letsrecycle.com this week, a spokesman for DCLG said the government was keen for councils to avoid passing on costs to residents, noting that Amber Valley in Derbyshire removed green waste collection charges in January (see letsrecycle.com story).

This follows comments by Communities Secretary Eric Pickles in February, who said he was disappointed by Derby city councils decision to charge for garden waste collections and said that other councils should follow suit with Amber Valleys example.

Charges

The DCLG spokesman said: “This government has abolished the last Governments plans to introduce new bin taxes, and given new guidance that backdoor bin charging for mainstream waste collections is illegal.

Whilst councils can charge for discretionary services like garden waste, such charges are often unpopular with the public and can be counterproductive by reducing recycling.

Rather than hiking user charges, councils should be making sensible savings through better procurement, innovation and more joint working. Indeed, councils like Amber Valley are introducing free garden waste collections.

The comments have been backed by Jonathan Isaby, political director of the TaxPayers Alliance, who criticised councils for expecting residents to pay for a service that has previously been offered for free.

He commented: Families are already paying a fortune in Council Tax it has virtually doubled over the last decade. One of the most basic services that people expect in return for their cash is for their rubbish to be collected.

The news that some councils are charging extra for the collection of green waste is the thin end of the wedge for hard-pressed taxpayers.

Councils

Alongside Sheffield and Monmouthshire councils, residents in Horsham, West Sussex will be required to pay from May 2013 to have garden waste collected, while East Lindsey council in Lincolnshire is consulting householders on the possible introduction of a charge.

Meanwhile, residents in Eastleigh, Hampshire, are said to be unhappy due to a proposed 5 increase to the district councils green waste collection service charge, which will be used to pay for wheeled bins for green waste. Some homeowners have claimed that they are unlikely to continue to use the service as a result of the increase.

Councils introducing charges argue that they are necessary as it is not a service that can be used by all households, and it is unfair for residents without gardens, who usually live in less affluent areas, to subsidise those who do.

However, some have scaled back plans to charge for the service in the face of strong opposition from residents. In York, plans to introduce a blanket charge for garden waste collections were dropped in favour of a 35 charge for those using more than one green bin, after residents responded negatively to the plan in a public consultation.

Introducing a charge for the collection of green waste has been an increasing trend for councils in recent years (see letsrecycle.com story).

A BBC survey in June 2012 found that around one in three councils have a charge for the service, with others commenting that residents face a postcode lottery depending on where they live.