Cheshire defends brown bin policy

Cheshire East Council has defended its decision to leave garden waste brown bins uncollected over the winter.

The move has been condemned by some Chatbox contributors who fear bins could be overflowing by next spring.

The council has announced that it has extended the period for not collecting green waste which now runs from November 18th to March 14th.

Cheshire East says it will save more than £1m over the next four years and claims there is "far less need" for the service in winter months.

Councillor David Topping, cabinet member in charge of the environment, added that the council is "committed to working innovatively to be more effective and efficient and deliver real value for money for the taxpayers of Cheshire East."

He said: "The changes outlined will save the authority more than £1m over the next four years. That is a lot of money which the council will now be able to use to focus on improving key winter services that really matter to local people, such as repairing potholes and gritting our roads."

The decision to suspend winter garden waste collections is expected to save the authority £120,000 in the first year and up to £300,000 in following years.

The council recommends that winter garden waste should be composted at home, taken to a local recycling centre or stored in until collections restart.

For more information about the council's waste and recycling services and changes to collections over the Christmas period visit here.

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