Powys Council reviews controversial recycling centre changes
At a Powys County Council meeting on Thursday, July 10, Conservative councillors tabled a motion calling for a review of the controversial scheme to take place within six months of its introduction.
This would allow the council to decide whether the system should continue.
The changes caused uproar and the council's anti-poverty champion Cllr Joy Jones (Powys Independents) organised a petition in opposition to them, signed by 4,200 people.
Cllr Amanda Jenner (Trelystan and Trewern) who put the the motion forward pointed to a U-turn months into a similar scheme in Shropshire this year.
' Shropshire listened and I hope that you will too,' said Cllr Jenner.
Conservative group leader, Cllr Aled Davies seconded the motion and called for a 'full review' taking in cross-border recycling centre issues.
He pointed out that residents in his ward of Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant and Llansilin have a 20-mile trek to the recycling centre in Welshpool, despite Oswestry being only six miles away.
Cllr Peter Lewington (Conservative) said: 'Here in Newtown we're experiencing more and more fly tipping in our green spaces.
' Residents are regularly reporting rubbish being dumped in different parts of the town and their parkland.
'Indeed, the body that leases and manages 130 acres of town and county council parkland here is having to consider installing CCTV to identify the fly tippers.'
But others said they had their minds changed on the booking system.
Cllr Liz Rijnenberg (Labour) said: 'There are different experiences across the county and the one I've had in Brecon is that it's been very good and positive.
'Review is a key part of the process, it's a basic standard in service delivery.'
She wondered why Cllrs Jenner and Davies had not approached the cabinet to find out about the upcoming and called the motion an 'ineffectual use of council time'.
Cllr Amanda Jenner Transport and recycling chief Cllr Jackie Charlton said: 'Because we have the booking system in place we can do a review.
'We couldn't do one before because we had no statistics or data and didn't know what was happening in our sites."
She added that enforcement action would be taken against people caught fly-tipping.
Cllr Jenner said: 'There was a huge level of concern expressed by people at the outset and I think they would appreciate us discussing this openly.
'It's important that we get a public assurance that the review will take place which we have had, and I would really appreciate a date for that.'
Cllr Charlton answered: 'We are committed to doing the review in October'
A vote saw 32 councillors back the motion, 12 oppose it, and 11 abstentions.
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