Newport recycling centre to close
Newport’s Community Recycling Centre is to close and others in the borough of Telford & Wrekin will open for less hours from Monday 16 April.
The decision was taken by Telford & Wrekin Council to close Newport Community Recycling Centre because of high running costs and the amount of usage of the site compared with the other centres in the Borough.
Community Recycling Centres at Halesfield, Ketley and Granville will now open five days a week instead of seven.
The council have drawn up a timetable of opening hours to ensure there is always at least one site open in the borough at any time.
The Halesfield centre will be closed Thursdays and Fridays, Ketley will be closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays and Granville will be closed Wednesdays and Thursdays.
Telford & Wrekin Council say the reduction in hours is partly as a result of savings measures but also because the council’s successful kerbside collection scheme now offers the collection of more recyclable materials than ever before – meaning the community recycling centres are being used less.
Opening times at the centres from March to October will be 8am-4.30pm. From November to February, it will be 8am-4.30pm week days and 10am-3.30pm at weekends and on Bank Holidays.
The council took the decision to close the Newport centre as it had by far the lowest throughput in terms of number of vehicles and tonnage of waste, meaning that it costs significantly more per tonne to run the Newport site.
Newport’s running costs are £80 per tonne compared to the average of the other three sites being £37 per tonne. Telford & Wrekin Council has written to Newport Town Council to explain the decision.
Councillor Shaun Davies, cabinet member for Environment, Co-operative Council and Partnerships, said: “The council has a significant budget gap of £40m to close over the next three years and have had to maximise savings across a range of different service areas.
“The proposal to close the Newport site has not been made in isolation and we had given consideration to potential closure of other sites. We took into account running costs, the throughputs, operational constraints and the current level of service provided.
“I am confident that the provision at the remaining three centres will be sufficient for the borough’s recycling needs and would like to than the community for their continued efforts in participating in recycling.
“The more we recycle at kerbside means less spent on landfill charges which can ultimately save the tax payer hundreds of thousands of pounds and can save frontline services from further savings.”
