REDCAR & Cleveland Borough Council’s Cabinet has today approved a number of reports aimed at managing the area’s waste and keeping the borough clean and tidy.
The reports presented to Cabinet today (Tuesday, January 19) included: additional powers to curb dog fouling, plans to improve recycling across the borough and changes to opening times at Dunsdale Household Waste Recycling Centre.
Plans to crack down on dog fouling will see the council replace three existing dog control measures with a single Public Spaces Protection Order. The new powers would be used by the council to introduce new offences:
- failure to have the means to pick-up after a dog;
- exclude dogs from additional designated areas, namely fenced-off children’s play areas;
- require dogs to be kept on leads in designated areas, to be determined.
There will be a 10-week public consultation on the plans, so that people can have their say on the new proposals, and in particular the council would welcome responses from dog owners.
Also approved were plans to keep the council in line with national targets on how much household waste is recycled or reused.
The council currently recycles 47% of household waste – the highest rate in the Tees Valley – but it needs to hit the government target of 50% by 2020.
To achieve this, two distinct plans are being put in place. The first is to increase the sorting and pre-treatment of recyclable materials at the Warrenby Waste Transfer Station meaning more waste can be recycled or reused.
The second is to make the public more aware with the launch of a borough-wide engagement programme ensuring residents have up-to-date information on what can and can’t be recycled.
This would also be in addition to a pilot reward scheme encouraging positive recycling behaviour, and engaging residents and local businesses.
Finally in Cabinet, recommendations were accepted to change the Dunsdale Household Waste Recycling Centre opening times to seven days a week.
Opening times have also been standardised with the centre open 10am – 5pm Monday to Friday and8am – 7pm at weekends during the summer, and 10am – 5pm during the week, and 8am – 5pm at weekends in the winter.
As part of the proposals, charges will be introduced for the disposal of non-household waste at Dunsdale. Hardcore and rubble will now be charged at £2.50 per 25kg, plasterboard at £5.00 per 25kg, and Asbestos will cost £6.00 per 25kg to dispose of.
Councillor Helen McLuckie, Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, said: “All these plans have been introduced to maintain the council’s commitment to managing the area’s waste and keeping the borough clean and tidy.
“We hope the introduction of new legislation tackling those who don’t clean up after their dog will make people change their ways and not ruin the borough’s parks and green spaces.
“We know there are a lot of responsible dog owners in the Borough and we are particularly keen to hear their views. The aim of the legislation is to work with the public so that we have a cleaner and greener borough for everyone.
“In addition, we hope that the seven-day opening of Dunsdale Recycling Centre and better promotion of recycling will see Redcar and Cleveland become one of the greenest boroughs in the Tees Valley.”