Getting rid of recycling bins in Powys 'silly' - councillor

One of the ideas being looked at to help the county council balance its budget is removing some of the recycling banks at sites across the county, saving £30,000.

A total of £7.7 million in savings, cuts and income generation need to be made if Powys County Council is to balance its budget by the end of March 2023.

Environment cabinet member Councillor Heulwen Hulme said the decision was partly to help the council hit Welsh Government recycling targets which will be 70 per cent in 2024/25.

The banks for cardboard would be kept, explained Councillor Hulme, because amid the increase in home shopping during the Covid-19 pandemic, more cardboard was being recycled.

“I know the saving is not considerable, that’s mainly associated with the fuel and staff costs,” she said.

Councillor David Evans asked where tourists would put their rubbish.

“We have easily accessible facilities at the moment in car parks, visitors won’t have the road collection facility," he said.

“There will be a lot of rubbish just left about, because in fairness to them, the facilities won't be there. It’s like losing the toilets, we want tourists to come but we’re closing the facilities. It's a very silly decision."

Councillor Hulme said: “Personally, I leave the rubbish in my car and take it home to be recycled.”

She added that campsites would also be expected in future to have recycling boxes to separate the rubbish.

Councillor Jeremy Pugh said: “We provide overnight parking in our car parks; it means our bins will be overflowing and it makes the place look shoddy and we’re so reliant on tourism.”