This comes as plans for the reopening of HWRCs have also been announced in Scotland and Wales.
The DAERA minister had asked the Northern Irish government to lift restrictions on garden centres and HWRCs, which was agreed to at Thursday’s (14 May) meeting.
Minister Poots has now urged councils who have yet to do so, to reopen their HWRCs “as soon as is safely possible”.
“Irrespective of the pressures of the current crisis, the increase in fly-tipping recently observed in our countryside has been inexcusable and must stop. It has polluted and damaged our local environment,” he said.
Some recycling centres had already opened, with others, such as Derry City and Strabane district council, opening today and reporting large ques.
♻️We are experiencing high volumes of traffic at all of our recycling centres this morning
Lengthy queues are in place Please put your journey off until later this evening or later in the week
⏰Sites open 8am – 8pm daily
We appreciate your patience
➡️https://t.co/VzrDzWDoC2 pic.twitter.com/5nhSoeQSAs— Derry Strabane Cncl (@dcsdcouncil) May 18, 2020
Scotland
The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) issued a statement on Friday stating that HWRCs there will open on 1 June.
Councillor Steven Heddle, COSLA’s environment and economy spokesperson, said: “Leaders agreed today (Friday) that local authorities will plan for the reopening of household waste recycling centres on 1 June.
“The reopening of sites depends on receiving assurance that this will not negatively impact the Covid-19 infection rate and will be consistent with national travel advice.
“We are working closely with the Scottish Government and partners on this and are drawing up guidance”
“There will also be local considerations including the need to maintain physical distancing for staff and members and public which will determine whether and to what extent individual sites will be able to reopen.
“The intent behind this decision is to provide a level of coordination across Scotland, to avoid a disjointed approach which could lead to confusion, and to ensure access to household waste recycling sites is managed to best ensure the safety of both staff and the public. We are working closely with the Scottish Government and partners on this and are drawing up guidance.”
Wales
The Welsh government announced on Friday that it would also be opening its HWRCs “in the next week”.
However, the Welsh government said “the stay at home message in Wales remains” and people wishing to visit a centre are urged to go only if it is essential and the waste and/or recycling cannot be picked up by their council’s kerbside collections or stored at home.
All councils have agreed a common set of criteria that will need to be met before they can consider the safe reopening of recycling sites. Councils will need to be satisfied that:
- There is an appropriate level of staff available to operate the facilities.
- The sites can comply with stringent health and safety requirements including sanitisation, social distancing and the implications for traffic management.
- Trade unions are being consulted to agree the basis for any reopening and operation of the centres.
Deputy minister for housing and local government Hannah Blythyn said: “Wales has a strong recycling record and we have been working with local authorities in Wales to reopen recycling centres in a safe way. Waste and recycling services are critical public services and we have developed clear guidance with local authorities on how they can reopen safely to ensure the wellbeing of staff and the public.”
Queues
With HWRCs opening in England last week, local authorities across the country reported long queues as demand soared for the services.
Devon county council introduced a ‘phased’ reopening of Devon’s centres last week; however, it later had to appeal to residents not to queue on the roads and to return at a later date.
Councillor Andrea Davis said: “[The reopening has gone] relatively well so far. However, we are experiencing some problems with traffic queuing back onto the public highway causing a safety issue.”
The newly reopened Sidmouth and Exmouth recycling centres had to close temporarily on Tuesday to disperse the queues.
Hillingdon
Hillingdon council reported 2 hour queuing times today (May 15) and urged residents to “try another day if they can”.
The Harefield Civic Amenity Site, which is now open 8am to 4pm, asked residents to avoid lunch time periods when queue times are peak and not to arrive after 3.30pm.
We’re seeing 2-hour queuing times at Harefield Civic Amenity Site this morning. It’s open 7 days a week, so please try another day if you can. Black bags and garden waste can be put out as part of your normal weekly collection. https://t.co/wXNFfuaH0D
— Hillingdon Council (@Hillingdon) May 15, 2020
Poole
Huge demand was also seen at Pooles Nuffield HWRC on the day of its reopening (11 May).
Queues stretching 600 metres along Nuffield road were reported by the council at 8.34am before the reopening at 9am.
BCP council (Bournemouth, Christchrist and Poole) asked people to visit the site during off-peak times and avoid the early morning rush.
If you’re thinking of visiting our tips today, please look at this picture & decide if you really need to visit.
This queue is at our Nuffield tip in Poole & reaches the toy superstore. If you do decide to come, expect long wait times & please treat our staff with respect, TY. pic.twitter.com/WW31CPSql2
— BCP Council (@BCPCouncil) May 11, 2020
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