A GROUP of residents is threatening to boycott the wheelie bins being introduced in Henley and South Oxfordshire from Monday.
They say the new waste collection system has been forced upon them and that the huge bins could be dangerous for elderly householders to use.
The £56 million system brought in by South Oxfordshire District Council has sparked fury across the area. Residents say the 240-litre and 180-litre bins are unsuitable for thousands of properties and householders and will create an eyesore in a tourist town such as Henley.
The council says recycling rates will be improved and claims that “teething problems” will be sorted out.
The threatened boycott comes from residents of Brinds Close in Sonning Common.One said: “We are thinking of putting all our rubbish into bags and putting them on the grass at the top of the close to be collected.
“If the binmen don’t collect them, then we will have to call the district council and ask them to come back. Rubbish collection is what we pay our council tax for.
“There are residents here in their eighties and nineties — it would be dangerous for them to move the bins, particularly in bad weather.”
She added: “Wheelie bins are being forced upon us. The district council has said that it will send officers to assess the close but I haven’t seen anybody.”
Brinds Close has 18 terrace houses, meaning there are 36 wheelie bins, two per household. The residents want to continue using sacks.
Joan Selway, 88, said: “I have no space for the bins. I would have to drag them through the house and I can’t do that so I will have to leave them on the pavement. If it was icy and slippery, then it would be dangerous.”
Tony Cree, 83, said: “I have steps over which I will have to lift the bins to get them to the kerb but I can’t do that because I have bad arthritis. The bins are too big, they should be half that size, but then there would still be the problem of where we would put them.”
She added: “Please go back to bags as soon as possible.”
Alan Simmonite, 65, said: “Residents only use half a bin a week each anyway — we have no use for them.”
The residents claim they will have to put the bins on the pavement due to lack of space.
One said: “That makes it difficult for pedestrians and those with pushchairs because they can no longer go along the pavements easily.
“The current dustcart can’t even turn down the close because it is so narrow and with parked cars it is even more difficult. The new truck to pick up the bins will be even bigger.”
Paul Woodley, 47, said: “What I want to know is who is liable if the bins fall and hurt somebody?”
Dirk Jones, a Sonning Common parish councillor, said: “With less than a week to go, houses in Brinds Close, which are incapable of storing bins, still have them blocking the pavements with no consultation so far as to alternatives. Residents are confused and worried.
“When the bins are full they are too heavy to manoeuvre. In Germany, where I used to live, residents are not allowed to move bins as they could injure themselves.”
Meanwhile, a fleet of new trucks will hit the streets next week operated by Verdant, which is taking over the waste contract for the 56,000 homes in the district from Grundon.
David Dodds, the council’s cabinet member for waste, urged residents to give the new system a chance.
In a letter in this week’s Standard, he says: “I believe it will be a hugely positive change for our district. For the first time we will be able to compost food that would normally go to landfill and people will be able to recycle glass, drink cartons such as Tetra Paks, aluminium foil and aerosols from their household collections.
“South Oxfordshire residents are already good recyclers and the new system will ensure even greater success in increasing recycling rates.” Verdant managing director Roger Edwards said: “After months of hard work and detailed planning, our team is ready to roll out the best possible recycling and refuse collection service.
“We have lots of experience and know that there can be teething problems in the early days. I’d ask all residents to understand the complexity of our new task and let us know when and where there are problems so that we can sort them out quickly.”
Since the introduction of the bins was announced, there have been protests.
Henley town councillor Jeni Wood said: “If you look at other towns with wheelie bins, the streets look so ugly and messy with long lines of them running down the road.”
Media business consultant Craig Nayman, of Thames Side, Henley, called for a “march of the wheelie bins” and won the backing of Thunderbirds creator Gerry Anderson, 80, of Nuffield, who promised to help “mobilise the troops”.
Some Henley residents told how they would have to drag their bins more than 50 yards to a collection point. One homeowner in Crisp Road said: “The problem is the council has not given any thought to our special circumstances.”
There was some success in the fight against the bins. Residents of Gladstone Terrace, in Reading Road, Henley, petitioned the council to remove the bins until it relented — despite having already delivered them. One resident called it “a victory for common sense”.
Published on 08 June 2009
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