Public urged to have say on proposed tip closures
CONSULTATION ON FUTURE OF SITES COMES TO END TODAY
A Consultation on plans to close three waste sites will close at midnight tonight (Wednesday).
Leicestershire County Council is proposing to close the tips in Market Harborough, Shepshed and Somerby, to save £420,000.
It has an ultimate target saving of £580,000 for its recycling and household waste services.
The authority said it runs more waste sites than any other East Midlands county.
The consultation, which closes on Wednesday, also proposes changing the Bottesford site’s opening hours to three days from five.
Summer opening hours for all the remaining sites would be 9am to 5pm between Saturday and Monday, instead of 7pm.
Opening days for the Melton site would change from Thursday to Monday to Saturday to Wednesday.
Harborough MP Neil O’Brien said: “As the consultation enters its final week, it is important that as many residents as possible take part in the consultation.
“The more people that say they want the tip to remain open, the harder it will be for the county council to ignore the incredible strength of public feeling.
“I have had lots of residents who have got in touch with me to say they don’t want to travel to Kibworth.
“I have also had others who have contacted me concerned about the increased road traffic at Kibworth tip.
“Almost everyone I have spoken to is worried about an increase in fly-tipping.
“It is not just me who has concerns. My colleague Alicia Kearns (MP for Rutland and Melton) has told me she has fears that the closure will lead to fly-tipping in her constituency.
“We are both opposed to the closure and hope residents will make their views known.”
County councillor Blake Pain, cabinet member for the environment and green agenda, said: “We’re doing the best we can with the money we have and we’re super-efficient, but there’s growing pressure and we need to make savings where we can.
“Proposing to close these sites isn’t easy but I want to be clear that no decisions have yet been made. We really want people to tell us what they think of these plans.
“We’re focusing on sites that are relatively expensive to run and have practical, viable alternative locations for those who use them.”