Issue - meetings

Report of the Cabinet Member Sustainability

RESOLVED THAT

1.      A pay-per-bag service be introduced, at a charge of £1.25 per disposable bag to be sold in rolls of 10, in those hard-to-access streets where the existing wheeled bin service is less appropriate as a practical solution for garden waste collections, with effect from 30 January 2012.

2.      A reduction in charge be introduced for the wheeled bin service to £34 per annum for new customers, and for customers who renew before their renewal date. This reduction is to run from 01/12/11 for a limited period of up to six months.

3.      Authority be delegated to the Director of Commissioning in consultation with Cabinet members (Sustainability & Finance) and S151 officer for future changes to charges for garden waste services,

4.      Authority be delegated to the Director of Commissioning in consultation with the Cabinet Member Sustainability, to complete the list of streets in Appendix B and thereafter maintain it.

Councillor Whyborn introduced the report which set out the results of the review of the garden waste scheme.  After consultation with householders, the proposed improvements to the scheme included the provision of an alternative bag scheme in hard to access areas and the offer of a discount to existing and new brown bin customers for a set period. He emphasised that the scheme does pay for itself and compared this with the enormous cost of the previous green bag scheme which have been free to customers but heavily subsidised by the council.  He confirmed that the bags for the pay-per-bag service would be fully compostable and digested at a plant in Dymock. The bags would go on sale on the 30 January and be collected from the middle of February onwards. He referred to the list of streets in appendix B and suggested that there may need to be changes to the list before it was finalised.  To facilitate this he proposed an additional recommendation which would delegate authority to officers to amend the list and subsequently maintain it.

The Leader considered it was a very sensible scheme and that Cabinet were happy to support the recommendations.

RESOLVED THAT

1.      A pay-per-bag service be introduced, at a charge of £1.25 per disposable bag to be sold in rolls of 10, in those hard-to-access streets where the existing wheeled bin service is less appropriate as a practical solution for garden waste collections, with effect from 30 January 2012.

2.      A reduction in charge be introduced for the wheeled bin service to £34 per annum for new customers, and for customers who renew before their renewal date. This reduction is to run from 01/12/11 for a limited period of up to six months.

3.      Authority be delegated to the Director of Commissioning in consultation with Cabinet members (Sustainability & Finance) and S151 officer for future changes to charges for garden waste services,

4.      Authority be delegated to the Director of Commissioning in consultation with the Cabinet Member Sustainability, to complete the list of streets in Appendix B and thereafter maintain it.