Revolt begins against the 'black bin town' (From Warrington Guardian)

Revolt begins against the 'black bin town'

RESIDENTS are set for a revolt against Vale Royal Borough Council after refuse collectors refused to remove rubbish.

Winsford is now being labelled 'black bag town' because of the large amount of waste left lying on the streets.

And Mike Kennedy, chairman of Grange Residents' Association, is calling on the council to take action.

He said: "We have always supported the recycling scheme but the time has come to speak out because people are so angry about this I can see a serious revolt happening.

"The council has to either go back to a weekly collection or agree to collect side waste. We can't go on like this - there are mountains of black bin bags all over the town.

"It has been especially bad over Christmas and people have now had enough."

The problems have been caused after claims by refuse collectors in last week's Guardian that they feared for their safety following abusive behaviour from gangs.

They are now refusing to collect waste in certain parts of Winsford following a number of violent incidents, including one worker being threatened with a golf club.

But many people believe the minority are giving everyone else a bad name.

One resident, who did not wish to be named, said: "I live on the Denbigh estate and haven't caused any trouble to anyone but still my bin hasn't been emptied.

"The estate is a disgrace and looks like a tip. It's not fair to those who don't cause any trouble. The longer this is left the worse it will get."

GMB union's Cheshire representative Jim Cairns said: "If they are threatened then they should just walk away and contact the police. Not collecting side waste is not a new issue as there could be anything inside those black bags, so it isn't safe for the workers to lift them up."

A spokeswoman for Vale Royal Borough Council said: "To encourage waste minimisation and recycling, only waste contained within the green wheeled bin is collected as part of the kerbside scheme.

"Over Christmas additional domestic collections were introduced to help people with the extra waste produced during the holiday period."

phennessey@guardiangrp.co.uk