MANSFIELD council chiefs are to launch a major public consultation next week for residents to have their say on bin collections.
Mayor Tony Egginton wants every household in the district to take part in the high-profile Great Waste Debate to find out if they want the council to bring back weekly household waste collections.
One of his election pledges before last May's mayoral vote was to introduce weekly bin collections during the summer months — but he later admitted there was no funding to introduce the scheme.
Now he has decided to ask folk whether they would back the move, which could lead to an increase in Council Tax, or are happy with the current fortnightly collections.
Said Mr Egginton: "As the service does affect every one of us, it is absolutely essential that every one of us should have their say about any potential changes in the way it operates, especially changes as significant as we are considering through the Great Waste Debate.
"The main emphasis is to get people's views on what they really think about how we handle the waste and whether we should be collecting the domestic waste weekly. It is a proper consultation, not just a dozen people, but right across the district."
BudgetThe mayor said if there was huge support for weekly collections, he would look at how to budget for it and suggested it could be brought in next year.
Issues surrounding how often bins are emptied have hit the headlines in recent years and, in 2004, the Campaign for Weekly Waste Collection was launched nationally.
Campaigners say fortnightly bin collections are a threat to public health and cause problems with flies, maggots and rats.
But 'green' groups like Friends of the Earth say recycling rates have increased in places where there are fortnightly collections and the volume of rubbish sent to landfill reduced –– saving tax payers' money on landfill fees. They argue people need to reduce the amount of rubbish they throw away.
People can have their say by completing a survey about the issue in the council's My Mansfield magazine, which goes out to every home from Monday and provides information from campaigners for and against weekly bin collections.
FACTS ON WASTE IN MANSFIELD
- The cost of emptying the green bins every week would be up to £1.2m extra a year or if weekly collections were just introduced for 12 weeks in the summer, the extra cost would be around £300,000.
- The volume of waste generated by the district and taken to landfill in 2006/06 was 34,729 tonnes — the equivalent weight of more than 180 Blue Whales.
- Mansfield District Council has received 11 official complaints from residents in the last 18 months because of maggots, flies, smells or other issues relating to the fortnightly collections.
- For 2006/07, the percentage of waste recycled of composted in the district was 27 per cent. The council must recycle 40 per cent by 2010 or will face financial penalties.
INTERNET LINKS: Campaign for Weekly Waste Collection Friends of the Earth RELATED STORY:Mayor's great waste debate vowSign in below to have your say.