![Green bins. [photo: Sebastian Ballard; licence: cc-by-sa 2.0]](https://www.bradleystokejournal.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/green-waste-bins.jpg "Green bins. [photo: Sebastian Ballard; licence: cc-by-sa 2.0]")
Has anybody else actually read the leaflet delivered locally this week regarding forthcoming changes for the collection of green waste (green bin)?
The council are going to start charging for this service and are holding a consultation on three options.
I’m not sure how widely these leaflets have been distributed, the info is on their website so make sure you read it and have your say!
BS Res
Ed: Very briefly, the three options being considered are: annual subscription of £36/year; pre-pay sacks at £20 for 10 sacks; or ‘pay as you go’ sacks at £2/sack. More information about the consultation can be found here:
Well I for one haven’t had a leaflet, and I will not be happy about it, as I hardly ever use my green bin, especially during the winter months! All it ever gets filled with is my grass cuttings!!
From the consultation document:
“In all cases, if you don’t want any garden waste collected, you don’t have to pay anything. You only pay if you use the collection service. The council’s Sort It!* centres will still be available for residents to recycle their garden waste free of charge.”
Not had this leaflet but what will happen if we just put our green waste in the black bin? I thought we already paid for this in our taxes.
In my view, charges are unacceptable. We already pay for refuse collection. The council introduced the green bin scheme themselves, and now they want to charge? Excuse the pun but, RUBBISH!
I’ve not had a leaflet either.
So despite my council tax being frozen (in fact it’s gone up 73p!)
The services being provided have actually been reduced or an extra charge is being demanded?? Mmm… !
I’ve had no leaflet, if I did it got recycled ! Why do we pay council tax again? I’ll just put green waste in the black bin since mines never full anyway….
Typical SGC underhandedness, where is the other option of them doing the job we are already paying them to do?
Under Labour our Council Tax more than doubled. I see no additional services for all this extra cash. The Council do have some nice new offices though….
Take my green bin away, it’s all going in the black bin from now on,
The first I heard of this was in the campaign leaflet sent by the Conservatives, which drew my attention to the consultation on the South Glos Council Website where you can complete an online survey.
Don’t just rant about it – complete the online survey and tell the council what you think – there’s a free format box at the end of the survey where you can express your concerns.
SGC are actively encouraging people not to recycle by wanting to charge for green bin collections.
Why would people not put their garden waste in the black bin if there was the opportunity to save money.
Posted something about this on the Journal’s Facebook page a couple of months ago (Admin any way you can link the page to this?).
Aren’t impressed! Their “consultation” gives no options for things remaining as they are now – just “new” options! It’s not a consultation – more a “statement of intent” that gives no allowance for anyone wanting things to remain as they are!
Perhaps we should take all the grass cuttings from our gardens and put them on the cricket pitch or the bowling green that the council seem to love throwing money at?
Until the council can show that it has effectively cut needless spending (the bus lane by willbrook for example, millions on broadband, moving the council offices!?!?) and the councillors expenses and wages are under control – then I don’t think they should be trying to short change us anywhere else?!?!
And yes – anon-e-mouse – I think you’re right – black bin for everything from now on – not interested in paying to recycle my garden rubbish – it should be part of what we already pay for!!!
Matt Morris wrote about this on the BSJ Facebook page on 19th Feb.
Read what he wrote and further reader comments here:
http://www.facebook.com/BradleyStokeJournal/posts/517370864979761
I think they are trying to encourage people to either compost or fly tip. Either way I don’t have enough garden waste to warrant paying such an amount each year.
Will we get a reduction on our council tax first, after all we are already paying for this service and should not have to pay twice for it.
No leaflet for my household. I guess the idea is to consult in secret and then declare there were no objections.
I won’t be paying to have my green bin emptied.
If the council only wants to charge us for services we use I want a rebate for all the services I don’t use.
Haven’t used the fire brigade for 30+ years and I don’t need my internet connection subsidised.
A cheque will be fine.
Matt
What a brilliant response, you made me actually chuckle when I read your post, what a great concept, only pay for the services you use… I could afford to retire on that basis (no school children so don’t need schools, never ill so don’t need doctors, don’t go out at night so don’t need street lights, lazy sod so don’t need sports centre, prefer the TV so don’t need library…. etc etc)…… a cheque will also be fine….if only !!!
I bet you did get the leaflet, but nobody read it. I did and it explains everything very clearly! It is rubbish though that we need to pay for something else! Not fair
I pay Council Tax for something like this to be done… And Council Tax is not even cheap! I’m sorry but i rather fly tip than pay for my garden waste to be disposed.
As the majority of people only use their green bin for disposing of garden waste why don’t they just collect the waste between April and September when people are actually gardening.
I also use my bin for getting rid of bedding etc from my rabbit hutch but I could just as easily put it in the black bin.
Some strong views expressed here. If anyone would like to write a letter about this (or any other topic affecting Bradley Stoke) for publication in the first edition of the new Bradley Stoke Journal magazine, which will be distributed FREE to EVERY HOME in Bradley Stoke, here’s how to do it:
Bradley Stoke Journal News Magazine – Letters
Deadline for May edition: Wed 24th April 2013
I didn’t get the leaflet either and I would have noticed it, if it had been delivered!
I think that it is a joke – we pay for this service, the council then impose green bins on us and now they want to charge us.
I bet they will carry on collecting the black bin fortnightly – everything will end up in this bin, which defeats the objective.
Next it will be the food bins, cardboard bags….
Having read the above comments i see that some of you would put your grass cuttings etc into the black bin instead of paying the councils extra rip off charge, be careful as our lovely council also, in the future, proposes reducing the size of the black bin so as to encourage you to fly tip more ( oh silly me i mean recycle more). I dont know about you lot but i already have to regularly get on top of my black bin and jump up and down on it to get more in…..Yes i do already recycle but still sometimes struggle with the two weekly collection.Reducing the size of the black bin would be ridiculous and i’m sure i would not be alone in complaining to the council on that issue.
The best part is the the Council needs to make a £350,000 savings in the waste management budget. There are (about) 110,000 homes in the area. At £26 a home, that’s £2,860,000 in the Council’s coffers – well beyond the needed savings.
So, instead of giving the residents real options, they’re trying to get more money for other budget areas. They can’t raise council tax, so they’re trying a more sneaky approach.
Get all your friends to fill in the survey. You don’t have to choose a an option – it allows you to keep the field blank and still proceed.
Wolf, I had spotted that too. So the council can find the funds to collect and scrap all the green bins that would no longer be used and in addition procure and distribute a new, smaller black bin plus pay for the collection and disposal of tens of thousands.
This is a ridiculous situation, these council staff really need to come and work in the real world to see how a proper business is conducted rather than come up with their ivory-tower ideas.
Willis, if you want some sport, ask your local councillor what the South Glos Council pension black hole is. That’s where a third of our council tax is going. Time the employees started paying more. Just like us in the wealth creating sector.
Well, I for one actually support a charge for waste. However, I’d like to see this apply to black bins, not green. Our household has worked so hard over the last 2 years to use all the new recycling facilities offered, that we have literally got our black bin down to putting it out just every 4 weeks – and even then it’s less than half full. I’d rather see a charge for the black bin, personally.
Charge for black bins? You having a laugh SquareRoot? You must be made of money.
Don’t tell anyone but I got a leaflet and promptly recycled it…..and put it the wrong bin just to daring, but lucky for me nobody noticed when they emptied the bins so I think I got away with it!
Oh just to let you know I put all my grass cuttings down the toilet, however be warned it takes about an hour to flush it all away, but does leave a nice ‘just freshly cut grass’ smell which is a more envionmently freindly than using those shop bought air fresheners.
Think square root needs to give the black bin back if they are not using it to capacity or better still give it to me as I will fill it no problem as I have enough waste to fill more than one bin cos I just can’t be bothered to waste my time sorting waste
Has everyone completed the online consultation survey to say they are unhappy with the proposals? What I don’t understand with the proposals… or don’t see the point of.. is why replace everyone’s black bin with a smaller one?! I try and recycle everything I can as I don’t like to think of things going unnecessarily into landfill. Therefore the council spending thousands of pounds replacing my and everyones black bins with a smaller bin isn’t going to change my habits. It’s all a con so they are seen to be doing something to encourage recycling and can put a tick in that box.
@Phil – I would give it back, but I believe they charge to pick it up or “make a change”. I for one would love a half-size black bin as a compromise – but they charge for that too 🙂
We haven’t had a leaflet, but do use our green bin for Guinea pig bedding and garden waster. I was really pleased when they introduced the green bins for this as hated putting recyclable waste in the black bins. If they bring these new things in then their land fill will only go up again and so will people fly tipping their garden waste into hedges like they used to. I’m off to comment on the council web site!
I couldn’t agree more with ‘Jenny’ here and it’s worth repeating that we already pay for refuse collection. The council introduced the green bin scheme themselves, and now they want to charge? Pathetic!
We have received this news letter and find it astonishing that after being asked to recycle as much waste as we can we are now going to be charged for doing so.What is the next crazy idea is someone going to come up with.
I sent my protest by letter and also pointed out to the Council that they should take a look around the inner city roads of Bristol where smaller black bins have been introduced. Have the population been encouraged to recycle more!! No, bins overflowing, rubbish scattered everywhere – result a very dirty city. Ah there’s another way to raise more revenue – employ road sweepers to clear up the mess!!