Anger as recycling facility due to close

THE closure of a community recycling facility in the Rhondda would be “a massive loss”, councillors have said.

Councillor Elyn Stephens and Larraine Jones, who represent Ystrad on RCT Council, criticised the proposed closure of the Gelli Community Recycling Centre (CRC) on Nant-y-Gwyddon Road.

There have been many break-ins and incidents of vandalism over the past five years – which a council report says have reduced the amount of services available and made the site less costeffective than others.

Officials say they have been able to upgrade Treherbert and Dinas CRCs because there is floor space available – but insist they cannot do the same with the Gelli site because of the surrounding land.

They say the Gelli site is used less than those in Treherbert and Dinas – with only 100 tonnes per month being taken in, compared with 400 and 700 tonnes in the case of the latter.

Following a consultation, a number of objections and concerns were raised about the closure, including fears it could deter people from recycling because of the extra distance they would have to travel to the nearest centre.

Concerns were also raised about the closure leading to an increase in fly-tipping in the area.

People also argued that, rather than close the site, the centre could have reduced opening hours or have alternative uses.

If Gelli is closed, the Rhondda Valley would be left with three remaining CRCs – Treherbert, Dinas and Ferndale.

Cllr Stephens said: “The statement that the site is suffering from high levels of vandalism is simply not true. There have been two reported incidents according to police records in recent years.”

Cllr Jones said it would be a “massive loss” to Gelli if the facility were to close.

The council will consider the proposal on Wednesday.