Household Waste Recycling Centre booking system and charges for DIY waste disposal

On 22 February 2024, the council's medium-term financial strategy 2024-2029 was approved by full council.

Within that strategy there is a proposal to introduce a booking system for the Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRC) and charges for DIY waste disposal.

This proposal will ensure that the council can continue to provide a sustainable HWRC service to all Powys residents, within budget, whilst also maintaining a high standard of recycling across the county.

These changes will be introduced when the HWRC contracts are renewed, in early 2025.

Booking system

Booking systems have successfully been introduced at HWRCs in many authorities. Residents would be required to prebook their visit online or by telephone. This has the effect of reducing non legitimate use of the sites by commercial operators and users from outside of the county.

Prebooking a timeslot for their visit provides an improved user experience for residents not having to queue to use these facilities, whilst also allowing centre staff more time to help residents who may need assistance and/or advice on how to recycle correctly.

Charges for DIY waste

DIY or building waste is not classed as household waste and there is no obligation on councils to accept it at HWRCs. Many other authorities have introduced charges for this material and seen significant savings for the authority, both through the income generated but also through reduced disposal costs, which will be redirected into delivering council services.

The introduction of a charge for disposal of this type of waste may be an inconvenience to some but HWRCs were never intended for residents to dispose of significant quantities of waste from large DIY or building projects where a skip would be more appropriate. It will also ensure that traders do not try to circumvent their responsibilities by leaving their waste with householders once they have completed a job.

When will this happen?

These changes will be introduced when the HWRC contracts are renewed, in early 2025. Details of the booking system and charges will be available on the website and promoted to residents prior to implementation.