We’re holding a consultation to ask residents their views on the future of our household waste recycling sites, or tips.
The first question we’d like your views on is whether we should start charging for certain types of materials that aren’t normal ‘household waste’ like rubble, soil, plasterboard, tyres and asbestos.
Our second question is whether we should carry out ID checks to ensure the people using the sites are Brighton & Hove residents.
At present we take household and non-household waste for free at our two waste and recycling sites.
Collecting these materials costs the taxpayer
But as accepting non-household waste costs the council, and therefore you the taxpayer, money we’ve decided it may now be time to start charging for disposing of rubble, soil, plasterboard, tyres and asbestos.
The money we charge would be ring-fenced and reinvested into Cityclean services like refuse, recycling and street cleansing.
Many councils already charge for some or all of these waste types, including nearby authorities in East Sussex, Surrey and Hampshire.
ID checks would save money
On ID checks, these only take place at present for van users to ensure they are residents of the city and to ensure they are not disposing of trade waste.
However, checks and other evidence shows people from outside the city are using our recycling sites.
This means Brighton & Hove taxpayers are paying for the disposal of waste from non-Brighton & Hove residents.
Introducing checks would save money and ensure the sites are only used by those local residents who pay for them.
Please have your say
The consultation, which starts today (6 April) and ends on 31 May, should take no longer than 10 minutes to complete.
The findings will then be taken to the council’s environment, transport and sustainability committee to discuss and decide on before any further action is taken.