Kingston plots major cut in bring site provision

Kingston-upon-Thames council is set to cull 27 of its recycling bring sites at the end of the month in a move which it claims could save it £130,000 per year in disposal costs.

The council, which agreed the proposed cuts at an executive meeting at the end of last month, claims that the closures will eliminate under-utilised sites across the borough which it deems “redundant” in the wake of an upsurge in the South-West London borough's kerbside recycling rate.

Kingston over-hauled its kerbside collection service in September 2008 to include a weekly collection of food waste and move its commingled collections from weekly to fortnightly. At the time Kingston also significantly increased the amount of recyclable material it could collect.

Since the adoption of the system, Kingston's recycling rate has almost doubled, going from 24% in 2006/07 to 46% in 2009/10. And, with the planned roll-out of recycling to flats in Kingston set to be complete by January 2011, the council has taken the opportunity to re-appraise its waste and recycling provisions.

Commenting on the closures, Derek Osbourne, leader of Kingston council said: “Thanks to the success of our household service and the recycling service for flats, we can now remove a costly service that is almost redundant as our kerbside recycling rate increases.

“It also makes financial sense especially as the council is facing one of its most challenging periods. By removing the sites we will save up to £130,000 each year, which will go some way in ensuring that residents are not made to suffer through increases in Council Tax.”

The council claims that, if the sites are successfully closed by the end of October, it could save £30,000 on its budget for 2010/11 – this is once the cost of clearing the existing sites is taken into account.

The savings would be achieved through not having to pay waste contractor Viridor to use its South London waste transfer station for the bulking of material collected from the existing bring sites.

Closures

The council agreed the proposals put forward by the director of environment and sustainability as it was stated it would not “impact significantly” on the quality of its recycling service.

The four most used sites in the London borough, based on tonnages received at the respective locations, were outlined as two sites in Surbiton, one in Kingston and another in Chessington.

However, the council has also said that it could still consider closure of these sites in the future.

And, Kingston has acknowledged concerns about a potential increase in fly-tipping as a by-product of the closures and has outlined plans to engage communities and residents about the plans.