Calendar row at council
A councillor has criticised the decision not to issue households with printed calendars to show their timetabled pattern of bin collections.
Conservative representative Trevor Douglas raised the issue with North Lanarkshire Council on noting that residents’ current long-term calendars run only until the end of this month.
Printed leaflets showing collection dates were issued to homes a year ago when the local authority made its controversial switch to a three-weekly cycle of waste, paper, and combined glass, metal and plastic collections for most households, alongside a fortnightly uplift of food and garden waste.
He says he is “disappointed” that replacement printed calendars are not to be automatically issued; North Lanarkshire officials instead say that householders can download copies or check the collections for their address online; but that those with no internet access can request a hard-copy calendar.
Councillor Douglas said: “As every resident of North Lanarkshire knows, the implementation of a three-weekly bin cycle has not been easy.
“With concern, I noticed the calendar all residents received last year is due to run out shortly; and after raising concerns with the new chief executive, I was informed that there was no intention to reprint an updated calendar.
“I was disappointed that the council did not see this potential issue; I’m that they have now started to make arrangements to address it, albeit there may be a slight delay in having the calendars available.”
A spokesperson for Nor th Lanarkshire Council said: “In line with most local authorities, the council will not print new calendars for household bin collections, but these will be available to download from our website.
“There is also an online option to check when each bin is collected by entering a postcode.
“If any residents do not have access to the website, they can request a printed version by calling Northline on 01698 403110 or visiting a First Stop Shop.
“There have been no changes to the bin collection schedule, so households will simply continue with the current pattern.”