Waste collections to be reduced in Basingstoke and Deane due to coronavirus

Bin crews will visit fortnightly

WASTE collections in Basingstoke and Deane are to be reduced temporarily to ensure collections can continue in the borough during the coronavirus outbreak.

From Monday, April 20, the grey waste bin will only be collected every fortnight instead of every week.

The fortnightly green recycling bin and glass container collections will continue as normal, with waste collection taking place the following week.

The day of the week that bins are collected will not change.

The changes are to allow waste collection workers to self-isolate if needed, while sustaining the service for the duration of the pandemic.

Cabinet member for environment and enforcement Hayley Eachus said: “Our bin crews are working very hard to complete all of the waste, recycling and clinical waste rounds in the borough while facing the same challenges with staffing as organisations up and down the country, owing to Covid-19.

“Temporarily moving to a waste collection service one week and recycling the next means we can also maintain our glass and recycling collections for residents.

“We will keep this under review and will go back to normal collections as soon as possible after the government restrictions have been lifted and we can safely do so.

“We know our residents value their waste collection service and consider it one of the most important services we deliver, but these are unprecedented times and this is the only way to continue to deliver a reliable service.

“We apologise for this temporary disruption and thank our residents for their understanding and ongoing support during this difficult time.

“We will do all we can to support our residents to reduce the amount of waste they place in their grey bins and keep them informed of what to recycle in their green bins.”