Resubscribe for Garden waste collection or your green bin could be taken away

Not taking away the bins until this month, is seen by Powys County Council (PCC) chiefs as a way of “encouraging” people to continue to use the service,

The fortnightly garden waste collections for grass and garden cuttings started up again in March following it’s annual hiatus over the winter months.

This year the charge for the service has gone up by £2.

Subscribers now have to pay £37 a year for a 240 litre wheelie bin or £32 for a 120 litre for the service on top of paying their Council Tax bills.

The details have been made public following a “question at anytime” put to the head of highways, transport and recycling, Matt Perry by Councillor Gareth Ratcliffe.

Cllr Ratcliffe said: “As we enter our third year of garden waste collection, I have a few questions around this service.

“Overall, it seems to be doing well but I would welcome some data to understand if it’s working well.”

Mr Perry answered: “No removals have yet taken place.

“We collect from all of the previous year’s subscribers for the first few collection cycles of a new season, even if they have yet to re-subscribe, so as to encourage the continued use of the service.

“We will then notify the customers who have yet to pay in April, indicating that if they do not renew we will begin to remove bins.”

During 2018/19, £225,000 was used to buy 10,800 wheelie bins of 240 litres as well as 3, 000 smaller 120litres bins.

Last year a further 2,340 green bins, which each hold 240 litres were bought at a cost of just under £35,000.

Seen as controversial when it started in April 2019, Garden Waste Banks at 35 community recycling sites in the Powys were closed .

One of the factors behind the decision, claimed the council is that the waste banks, have been abused by fly-tippers and commercial gardeners.

Mr Perry added: “It is important to note that whilst we are working to make the service cost neutral to the authority, savings have been made due to the removal of the garden waste banks for which no income was received along with the regular need to deal with the contamination.”

The number of subscribers is less than 2020, but the figures are not complete yet, and are up to March 29.

For more details visit https://en.powys.gov.uk/gardenwaste