CEREDIGION councillors are to debate proposals next week which could lead to the closure of the Rhydeinon household waste site in the middle of the county.
At the September 24 meeting of Ceredigion County Council’s Thriving Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee, members are to receive an update of the review of the household waste sites in Ceredigion.
Earlier this year, the council held a public consultation following last year’s decision to close one of its four Household Waste Sites and review the opening hours at the other sites in order to make a £100,000 saving identified in council budgets.
Ceredigion has four waste sites: Kilmaenllwyd near Cardigan, Glanyrafon Industrial Estate near Aberystwyth, Lampeter, and Rhydeinon near Llanarth.
In terms of tonnage last year, the four sites received 1,459.09; 4,098.5; 2,028.18; and 1,107.96 tons respectively.
The consultation said Glanyrafon is the only site in the north, with the preference to keep it open, with Kilmaenllwyd providing a southern facility; Rhydeinon and Lampeter having the greatest overlap.
Council documents have said that mothballing the Rhydeinon site and maintaining opening hours at the other sites “would have the least impact on residents”.
The consultation added: “The Rhydeinon Household Waste Site moth [sic] is proposed, until the review of the council’s waste services is completed, and the development of a long-term strategy for the council’s household waste sites. We believe that this will have the least impact on the residents of Ceredigion.
“We expect this to increase the volume of traffic around the sites in Kilmaenllwyd and Lampeter. For this reason, it does not intend to reduce the hours on the other sites at this time. Use of the site will continue to be monitored and a reduction in opening hours at the remaining sites may be considered again in the future.”
Following that consultation, 1,250 responses were received, “highlighting strong opposition to the proposal, concerns about travel distance, fuel costs, fly tipping, and the impact on the Welsh language and on communities,” a report for members ahead of the September meeting says, adding: “Respondents suggested alternatives such as reducing opening hours across all sites.”
It says current household waste site contracts are due to expire in early 2026, and procurement of new contracts will be commencing shortly.
“Should a decision be made to suspend use of the Rhydeinon HWS, or an alternative site, the appropriate contract would not be awarded. There is an opportunity to seek bids, during the procurement process, for operation of HWS with reduced opening hours as suggested in the consultation responses.”
There are three options before the committee, which would take the form of a recommendation to Cabinet: to suspend the use of Rhydeinon; to defer a decision until the procurement exercise has been undertaken and assess costs and options, including possible reduced opening hours; and to reverse the previous full council decision to close a site, temporarily funding Rhydeinon through grant funding.
