Since March 31st, households have been charged £36 a year to have their green bin waste collected – a service previously included as part of council tax bills.
Angry residents and community leaders have branded the measure – voted through by Labour and LibDem councillors after a sham consultation – as a ‘bin tax’ and have protested outside various council recycling centres over recent weeks.
Many people dispute the claim that the tax will save the authority money because of the increased costs of administration, as well as people simply putting their green waste in their black bin or fly-tipping.
Now the £649,000 estimated cost of implementing green bin charges can be revealed, which excludes publicity costs, and can be broken down as follows:
· £111,000 for ‘in cab technology’ on the Sita bin lorries so they know which households are paying the tax;
· £114,000 for collecting unwanted green bins;
· £140,000 for storing unwanted green bins;
· £70,000 for disposing of unwanted green bins;
· £214,000 to write off the costs of unwanted Sita bin lorries
In a previous report to councillors, council officials had admitted that the bin tax will:
· increase the cost of living via a new stealth tax on hard-pressed and hardworking households who already pay for their green bin waste to be collected through their council tax bills;
· cut recycling rates - Introducing the bin tax will reduce the overall tonnage of garden waste handled, which will reduce the council’s recycling performance by up to 1.5 percentage points. The rate would reduce even further depending on the amount of garden waste placed in the black bin and 28 per cent of respondents to the council’s consultation said they would do this to avoid being charged;
· put yet more pressure on the council’s congested recycling centres - Around 75,000 more visits a year (a 10 per cent increase) to the council’s four Sort It centres will be generated by residents keen to avoid the bin tax;
· increase fly-tipping – 15 per cent of respondents to the council’s consultation said that a bin tax would lead to them or others fly tipping their garden waste. The council states that this is ‘inevitable’ and there is evidence of increased fly-tipping in areas where a bin tax has already been implemented;
· worsen local air quality – 12 per cent of respondents to the council’s consultation were concerned about the environmental impact of people burning their garden waste and worsening local air quality; and
· create animosity between neighbours as a result of people putting their garden waste in their neighbour’s green bin without permission.
Cllr Ian Adams (Con, Siston and Warmley) is the Conservative Lead Member on the council’s Communities Committee and is leading the campaign on the council against the bin tax. He said:
“You couldn't make it up - this new bin tax is costing money, rather than saving it.
Having risen to an estimated and shocking £650,000 of council tax payers' money, these implementation costs equate to £6 for every household in the district - many of whom have little choice but to also pay the £36 annual tax on top of this.
This latest £650,000 estimate includes the new technology to administer this stealth tax, collecting, storing and disposing unwanted green bins and writing off the costs of surplus bin lorries and all of these massive costs were completely avoidable had Labour and LibDem councillors not voted to introduce their unpopular bin tax.
It's not too late to axe this bin tax and actually save local residents' money in the process.”
Boyd Valley Conservative councillors Steve Reade and Ben Stokes added:
"Households will be horrified to know that at a time when money is tight this flawed bin tax is costing them a whopping £650,000 to put in place.
So not will this damaging policy decrease recycling rates, increase fly tipping and worsen the cost of living, but it isn't even raising any money and is actually costing money to.
IT IS NOT TOO LATE TO SIGN OUR PETITION AGAINST THIS 'BIN TAX' -
Contact Luke Hall, Conservative Prospective MP for Thornbury & Yate Constituency - 01454 312065 or email:
[email protected]. OR sign on line: www.lukehall.org.uk.