A special task group will be set up to guide an ongoing review of Nottinghamshire’s recycling and household waste centres as its findings continue to be delayed.
Conservative-led Nottinghamshire County Council started the review in 2022 amid concerns some of the county’s 12 centres may not be “fit for purpose”.
The nearest recycling centre for Gedling borough residents is on Hollinwood Lane in Calverton.
Problems include their locations, capacity problems and their impact on the nearby road network.
However, the result of the review has been delayed while the authority waits for clarity on the impact of Government reforms.
Ministers are drawing up plans to “fundamentally overhaul” the waste system, with a new set of policies to change how people recycle their waste.
This could include a reduction of materials received by recycling centres and a shift to more kerbside collections, with food waste, plastic pots, tubs or trays, aerosols, cartons and plastic film potentially to be recycled from homes.
But the full impact of these changes is not yet known and the Government is yet to publish the outcomes of a number of consultations.
The council says this delay has meant it “has not been possible” to finalise the ongoing review of its recycling centre network.
In the place select committee on Wednesday (July 5), a special ‘task and finish group’ was set up to discuss the next steps for the review while the council awaits the updated environmental policies.
Once these have been provided, the authority says it will be able to determine how recycling centres will be utilised in the future.
Mick Allen is the council’s group manager for place commissioning.
He said: “It’s frustrating we haven’t been able to conclude things.
“Until we get certainty [from Government] about strategic issues, as well as costs, it’s very difficult to make a long-term plan.”
Mr Allen added about 98 per cent of all Nottinghamshire residents live within a 20-minute drive of their closest recycling centre.
A recent survey by council waste and recycling contractor Veolia found the same percentage of people were either satisfied or very satisfied with the service they offer.
