Western Daily Press (Saturday)
Proposal to shut 5 household recycling centres to save £1m
FIVE of Somerset’s household waste recycling centres could close permanently in order to save nearly £1m.
Somerset has 16 household waste recycling centres, which are operated by Biffa on a contract with Somerset Council.
The council published proposals for more than £35m of savings earlier this month as it struggles to bridge a projected £100m budget gap for the next financial year.
To save £963,000, the council is proposing that five of the 16 sites will permanently shut with the land potentially being sold off to generate further income.
A further £235,000 could be generated by introducing a permit system so that only Somerset residents can use the remaining sites.
It was reported earlier this month that Castle Cary, Cheddar, Crewkerne, Dulverton and Williton would be the five sites that would be shut down.
The closures are expected to generated £883,000 by April 2025, with a further £80,000 by April 2026.
The council said a final decision would be taken “based on those sites that offer the largest saving per tonne” and the final sites on the chopping block could change depending on commercially sensitive discussions.
A spokesman said: “We have a proposal that’s modelled on the closure of five sites and what savings we understand that would deliver but this needs more work. Commercial negotiations are ongoing and could change sites considered at risk.
“When there are firm proposals there will be detailed consultation and plenty of opportunity for people to share their views before decisions are made. However, it is important to appreciate that commercial negotiations are ongoing with our contractor and the five sites considered at risk could change depending on the outcome of those negotiations.”
The council confirmed that any closures would not be reversed should its financial position improve and that some of the sites could be sold off to generate a capital receipt.