‘Mass meeting’ in effort to save waste centres
A‘MASS meeting’ will be held to devise an action plan to stop the mothballing of tips at Bollington and Poynton.
The meeting will be held at Prestbury Garden Centre, London Road, on Sunday, March 17.
It has been organised by owner Chris Wellavize, who also intends to stand as an independent candidate for Macclesfield in this year’s General Election.
As part of cost cutting measures Cheshire East Council plan to ‘mothball’ the two household waste recycling centres – closing them from April 1.
This will be ahead of a decision on their long-term future later in 2024 following a formal review.
But the move has sparked large protests, an online petition has nearly 6,500 signatures, and Chris says time is running out
He said: “Having spoken to most small business owners in Bollington, the tip users, staff and residents I can honestly say that there is incredulity and anger at the move
“To save our recycling centres we need to act quickly. There seems to be a casual disregard for our communities’ welfare.”
The Stop the Tip Closures Mass Meeting starts at 4pm.
Chris wants local councillors to attend as well as council leader Sam Corcoran.
Protestors say the closure will lead to lower recycling, particularly with the new green bin emptying charge, more fly-tipping and increased traffic as people drive further to alternative tips.
The council says that the mothballing does not automatically mean the sites will shut permanently.
And Coun Mick Warren, chair of the environment and communities committee has spoken about the temporary closure.
He said: “As a mitigation we are proposing to offer an introduction, on a trial basis, of a mobile household waste recycling provision.
“This trial will inform potential future options for the rollout of the mobile provision to other areas in the borough. Details of how a mobile service would operate remain in development.“
The council also says that the feared increase in fly-tipping did not materialise when Congleton household waste recycling centre shut.