Warnings as weekly bin collections may be scrapped

Residents have expressed concerns over vermin and overflowing bins after a council report recommended ditching weekly bin collections.

On Thursday Brighton & Hove City Council is set to discuss plans to switch to collecting kerbside bins every fortnight.

The local authority said this would encourage greater recycling – which has been historically low in the city.

However, Brighton resident Michael Franklin told BBC Radio Sussex there could a build up of rats, mice and other pests as a result of the change.

Weekly bin collections were "more acceptable" for most people, he added.

About a quarter of rubbish is recycled while almost three-quarters is sent to be burnt in the incinerator at Newhaven, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Kaylee Steins, who lives in the East Sussex city, said the new system could be a "struggle" for big families with lots of waste.

"It's going to be a bit of a nightmare," she said.

Another Brighton resident Pamela Clark says "everywhere" bins are already "overflowing".

"I think it is a bad idea," she told BBC Radio Sussex.

Clark said that collections where she lives were not always done "at all".

Tim Rowkins from Brighton & Hove City Council said the authority had made "huge strides in modernising and improving the reliability" of its waste collection service.

"Crucially, we are now seeing more and more waste moving from the refuse bin into recycling," he said.

"As bins become emptier, we need to look at whether our current system is the most efficient and sustainable, and ask ourselves – can we justify collecting half-empty bins every week?"

Crews make about 99% of planned collections, according to the local authority.

Rowkins added that a majority of other councils have already moved away from weekly bin collections.

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