A NUMBER of proposed changes to waste and recycling services in Neath Port Talbot will not go ahead it has been announced.
The authority has decided not to go ahead with a number of potential saving measures which included a move to three weekly collections of residual black bag waste, along with additional charges for garden waste collections.
The decision was made at a council cabinet meeting held on November 13, where members discussed how they would meet Welsh Government recycling targets which are set to rise to 70% in the 2025-26 financial year, while still delivering a balanced budget.
It comes as the authority says it could be facing a £23 million black hole in its next year’s budget due to increased demands on services, with all council directorates asked to identify a 5% financial saving.
This would work out as a budget cut of £739,000 for waste and recycling services in the authority with other options on the table that included no longer providing black bin bags and ending the use of wheeled bins in collection rounds, though these options were all rejected.
The decision came after a number of scrutiny sessions from the council as well as a public consultation that saw a total of 3,740 responses received with 84% of people disagreeing with plans to go to three weekly collections and 73% of people disagreeing with extra charges.
Speaking at the meeting Cllr Scott Jones said: “We are listening to the public, taking into consideration the concerns raised by the public during consultation as well as those from the scrutiny and wider council membership. I’m not convinced moving to three weekly collections or implementing a green waste collection charge is the right approach at this time.”
Some changes were however approved at the meeting including the combining of paper and card kerbside collections as well as the introduction of small electrical item kerbside collections. The report also noted that eight of the council’s refuse collection vehicles are now due for renewal.
