May I thank you for accepting my invitation to visit the privately-run Deepings Recycling Centre in my Division in December 2005 and your resolve to explore the possibilities of an alternative service to replace the long-standing bring-to-vehicle service which was withdrawn by the County Council at the end of December.
However, it is now almost six months since your visit and I wonder if you would provide a report on progress to date. In particular, would you:
1. Share my frustrations that residents of the Deepings have lost a valued service while the County Council and South Kesteven District Council have so far been unable to agree on provision of an alternative service, despite funds being made available by Lincolnshire County Council.
2. Say how many people across the county have seen similar services withdrawn?
3. Provide information on the overall costs of the bring-to-vehicle service provided to The Deepings over the year to 31 December 2005 and an average cost over the year of each visit.
4. Say what tonnage was collected by the bring-to-vehicle service in The Deepings in year to 31 December 2005, and a total tonnage collected by all similar services across the county during the same period.
5. Confirm that all materials collected by the bring-to-vehicle service were land-filled rather than recycled. Could you give an estimate of the proportion of which could have been potentially recycled?
6. Give details of the incentives offered to each District Council to take on the bring-to-vehicle services previously provided by the County Council, the responses received and progress made in each case. In particular, I am interested in the reasons, if any, South Kesteven District Council have given for rejecting the County Council’s financial offer and whether you are prepared to attempt further negotiation.
7. Confirm that the privately-run Deepings Recycling Services have offered to provide a waste skip at their premises each Saturday for approximately a third of the cost of the Council’s own bring-to vehicle service and for more than twice the time.
8. Say why residents of The Deepings who contact Lincolnshire County Council to ask for the location of the nearest recycling centre, are directed to a facility some eight or nine miles away rather than to Deepings Recycling Centre within our own community.
9. Say whether you consider it desirable to provide proper traffic direction signs to recycling facilities across the county to reduce journeys where possible and encourage more environmentally friendly recycling.
10. Why does the Council charge privately-owned sites such as Deepings Recycling Centre for such signage?
11. Say what progress has been made on providing ‘green recycling’ facilities in The Deepings and elsewhere.
12. State your intentions regarding provision of a council-run Civic Amenity site to serve The Deepings and whether you will consider negotiating with the existing service provider.
13. Give the average expected cost to set up and run CA sites.
14. Publish latest recycling figures available achieved in each District Council serving Lincolnshire.
15. Note that the withdrawn Deepings service was widely used by residents of Deeping St James, despite being provided a few yards into Market Deeping and would you please ensure that where future changes to services are being considered, that there is consultation with all local elected members.
(Photo shows Ian Prentice and myself at Deeping Recycling Centre)
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