DONCASTER: Criticism over less frequent green bin collections

Nick Allen, Conservative councillor for Bessacarr, said he was pleased rounds were being reintroduced but added it was ‘such a shame’ waste workers would only be collecting on a monthly basis instead of fortnightly.

DMBC has said the reintroduction will enable to clear the green waste backlog while keeping staff safe through social distancing.

Waste collections for green bins will start again on Tuesday, June 23 and will take until mid-July to get across the borough reaching all households.

Fortnightly collections may not return until the end of August depending on if the plan is successful or not

The council recently suspended green bin collections so that they could prioritise household waste and recycling instead when the lockdown was announced back in March.

Waste bosses are also urging residents not to leave extra waste next to green or black bins as this will not be collected.

The six tips located across Doncaster can accommodate garden waste if a resident’s green bin is full.

“I was really pleased to see the council have taken action to restore green bin collections. However, as noted, the issue is in the detail.,” Coun Allen said.

“There will be fewer collections and this means many residents, many keen gardeners in particular, will not be receiving the service they were expecting.

“This is such a shame and I wish the council had made this absolutely clear. Particularly for residents with bigger gardens or more plants and flowers this is going to be an issue. It cannot be helped until they restore the full service.

“I am particularly concerned about this impact this would have locally in Bessacarr, Cantley and Lakeside on pensioners who live alone and have coped with overflowing green bins for too long. It affects young families too.”

A council spokesman said: “The monthly collections will enable us to clear the backlog of green waste and to make sure physical distancing can be maintained and that services are safe for staff and residents.

“If the interim period is successful then we are looking at resuming the fortnightly green bin kerbside collections from late August.

“Bins might be collected at a different time of day, so to avoid a missed collection please ensure you place your bin out for collection by 7am on your collection day.”

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