Harrow council purchased five 500 cameras for staff at the Forward Drive site to wear on their lapels, in order to film any exchanges with the public that they believe could turn violent.
And, the council is also considering employing a private security firm to discourage abusive behaviour and to act as professional witness should any incidents lead to court action.
The measures follow a spate of aggressive confrontations with staff at the site, which the council says is linked to residents being unhappy at being charged a fee for depositing waste.
Under current council policy, non-business users of the site are allowed to conduct three grace visits to the site over a 12-month period for any waste transported to the site in a van.
Once the three visits have been used up, they are then liable for the same charges as commercial tip users a fee of up to 220 per tonne of material deposited.
The policy has resulted in a number of incidents, which the council claims include one driver taking his shirt off and offering to fight a site attendant, and one visitor who claimed he had a shotgun he would use on staff.
Other incidents the council highlighted include a site manager who was threatened by a van driver who drove across his path, and a motorist who sped down a weighbridge ramp after refusing to give his personal details.
‘Unacceptable’
Councillor Susan Hall, leader of Harrow council and cabinet member for community safety and the environment, said: It comes to something when you need bouncers for your bins.
‘It is utterly unacceptable that council staff who are doing their best to keep our recycling and waste service running are threatened and intimidated in this way.’
Susan Hall, Harrow council leader
It is utterly unacceptable that council staff who are doing their best to keep our recycling and waste service running are threatened and intimidated in this way. These people are trying to cheat their way out of paying a dumping fee, and that just isnt fair on those who pay their way.
A spokeswoman for the waste and recycling sector trade body the Environmental Services Association added: Working at household waste recycling centres (HWRCs) involves a high degree of public interaction and unfortunately waste operatives on these site are just as susceptible as their colleagues on household waste collection rounds to violent and aggressive assaults by disgruntled members of the public.
CCTV cameras are now widely deployed on vehicles and in HWRCs to improve safety, and are also a useful deterrent against criminal and violent behaviour.
ASBO
Earlier this year, Harrow council introduced a policy ensuring members of the public who abuse regulations at the CA site can be issued with 12 month banning notices. If offenders ignore the banning notice, then the councils anti-social behaviour unit can go through the courts to seek an anti-social behaviour order (ASBO).
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