9:48am Tuesday 30th June 2009
By Emily Allen
Council leaders have apologised for the first time for problems caused by the roll out of south Oxfordshire’s new waste collection system.
South Oxfordshire District Council leader Ann Ducker and chief executive David Buckle posted a joint apology on the council’s website and said they hoped all the problems would be resolved by the end of this week.
The new rubbish contract aims to double the amount of waste recycled through weekly food waste collections and alternate weekly collections of recycling and residual waste.
Each home has been issued with two wheelie bins and a smaller kitchen caddy for food waste, or sacks if their home is not suitable for bins.
However, residents have been complaining of disrupted collections and some have still not received their wheelie bins or sacks despite the launch of the new service three weeks ago.
Scores of residents said they have been unable to get through to contractor Verdant on its helpline number 03000 610610.
The message read: “Thank you for your patience. We would like to apologise for the problems that some of our residents are experiencing with the new waste collection arrangements. “Whilst the vast majority of households are receiving the service, there are a few outstanding problems, mainly related to flats and isolated rural properties.
“We are working through these as quickly as we can with Verdant, our contractor, and hope to have all of them resolved by the end of this week.
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