Recycling banks across Eden have been left drowning in rubbish and used as dumping grounds after Christmas, sparking anger from residents.
Items never intended to be recycled have been dumped at overflowing centres in Penrith, Greystoke, Great Salkeld, Low Hesket and Shap, among others.
Parts of Penrith town centre are also becoming grot spots, with the Herald finding a fridge, a stained mattress, a broken pushchair and old tins of paint.
At the Sainsbury’s recycling point, those arriving on Wednesday described the scene as a “disgusting mess”. The recycling bins had been emptied, but a huge mountain of clothes had been fly-tipped, including shoes, toys, household furnishings and a microwave.
A visitor said it was the worst she had ever seen there. “Someone has obviously been round in a van because it’s not just one or two items — it’s fly-tipping,” she said.
“All this will now have to go into landfill because anything wet like this can’t be recycled. I’m sure the bin men are absolutely sick of finding this as well.”
She questioned why someone with access to transport had not just driven to the tip to dispose of it properly. Residents branded rubbish dumpers as too lazy to go to the tip or too impatient to wait for their official council collections.
The council-run household waste site at Flusco was closed only on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day over the festive period. There have also been questions about whether local charity shops were closed and not taking donations.
Others argued that recycling banks are not being emptied frequently enough and that more council collections are needed at this time of year.
In the villages, the clean-up job often falls on volunteer parish hall committees, on whose land the recycling banks are sited.
As the recycling banks at Greystoke village hall overflowed, community-minded residents with a combined age of 222 rolled up their sleeves to get rid.
And at the recycling centre on the outskirts of Great Salkeld, passers-by joined parish council chair Bev Pink in clearing up bags of wrapping paper, much of which cannot be recycled, and other rubbish piled around containers.
The recycling bins at Low Hesket village hall soon overflowed and other non-
recyclable items were left, leading to masses of litter blowing around.
Resident Daphne Sisson had personally picked up stray tins and cans, and said: “People have to take responsibility for their own rubbish.”
Elaine Martin, of Plumpton, and chair of Hesket Parish Council, said it would discuss the problem at its meeting on Tuesday. Mrs Martin added that Westmorland and Furness had to ensure local recycling banks were emptied more frequently. She added that an updated recycling calendar issued by the council had instructed householders in the Hesket area that kerbside collections would be made on Boxing Day, but they never happened.
Ms Martin said. “People have left it out for collection but when they have not been, they have got frustrated because they wanted rid of it.”
Of the problem, she said: “It’s getting worse. People use these centres as a dumping ground and it’s just too easy.”
Mark Jenkinson MP, standing as the MP for Penrith and Solway at the next election, joined in the debate.
He said extra waste over the festive period was not a “new phenomenon” and local councils should have a workable plan in place to cater for this excess waste so that recycling centres are not overflowing with it. “They can’t expect to just shut up shop and forget about it over Christmas,” Mr Jenkinson said.
Doug Lawson, mayor of Penrith, pointed out that Westmorland and Furness contracts out collections and waste costs taxpayers money.
Mr Lawson explained: “Every time someone fly-tips at one of these sites it just costs money — which will just lead to rises in council tax. Alternatively, you put in CCTV which also costs, and needs monitoring. People need to understand what they’re doing. There’s no magic wand that makes waste disappear.”
Westmorland and Furness said it investigated every case of fly-tipping reported. Penalties included on-the-spot fines of £250, warning letters, prosecutions and significant fines, or even custodial sentences for the most serious offences.
A spokesman said it was clear the mess left at Sainsbury’s was fly-tipping and it had been “irresponsibly dumped”.
“We have arranged for our contractor to clear the fly-tipped waste and clean up the site, but would remind people that fly-tipping is not a victimless crime. It damages wildlife, nature and the environment, creates eyesores and there is always a financial cost in the clearance, disposal and investigation of the offence — costs that are ultimately borne by the council tax payers of Westmorland and Furness.”
