Cabinet considers plans to charge for waste disposal

Proposals by Derbyshire County Council to introduce charges for people taking building and demolition waste to its nine household waste recycling centres will be considered by Cabinet members today (10 January).

Cabinet members are being asked to approve the charging scheme for soil, bricks, rubble and ceramics - such as bathroom furniture and tiles - to help meet Government spending targets.

The proposed charge is £3 per standard rubble sack. The council say this will make sure the scheme is 'cost-effective and generates profit.'

Councillor Dean Collins, Derbyshire County Council's cabinet member for Highways, Transport and Infrastructure said:

Contractor H W Martin runs the centres on behalf of the council. Any profit from the scheme would be returned to the council and the contractor has guaranteed to pay the council at least £70,000 per year for this type of waste, regardless of how much is collected on-site.

Payment would be by card machine only - no cash or cheques will be accepted. It is thought this would reduce security risks and is in line with other councils which have adopted a similar charging scheme.

Around 8,000 tonnes of building and demolition waste is collected at the recycling centres each year, limited to 50kg per house per week. This limit would be removed if the proposal was introduced.

Other proposals included in the consultation were to limit use of the council's recycling centres to Derbyshire residents only and introduce a permit scheme for vans, trailers and pick-ups to prevent use by businesses.