Lorry driver shortfall sees recycling waste go up in smoke

WASTE meant to be recycled is being burnt as a result of the lorry driver shortage as some homeowners have been told there will be no garden waste collections until next year.

Flat-dwellers in three south London boroughs have been told that recycling and rubbish collection will be “temporarily merged” and homes in some parts of Surrey will not have any more green bin collections this year.

A spokesman for the South London Waste Partnership said that the decision was taken as a solution to the HGV crisis because much recycling collected from communal flats was contaminated and had to be burnt anyway.

“Implementing this measure on a temporary basis in Croydon, Merton and Sutton will help us minimise the impact on the rest of the collection service; many local councils have had to suspend services such as garden waste collections, and that is something we want to avoid if at all possible.

“Veolia is working hard to recruit new drivers and we hope to be able to resume normal service soon,” he said.

Residents of Surrey Heath have been told not to expect any more garden bin collections for the “foreseeable future”.

Joint Waste Solutions, which manages the collections, said: “This will enable the priority services of rubbish, recycling, and food waste collections to continue to run while we have a limited number of drivers available. Please do not put your garden waste bin out.”

Veolia said: “To meet the industrywide shortage of drivers, Veolia is offering incentives such as a sign-on bonus for new staff, and a retention bonus for existing drivers in areas where we are most affected.”