1,000+ homes to lose free bin collection

Date Published: 25-Sep-2009

THE waste collection waiver – which gives a free rubbish collection service to low income households – cannot be sustained after this year, the City Manager has said.

City Manager, Joe MacGrath, who has described the overall position of the City Council as ‘extremely challenging’, warned councillors in a mid-term financial review that while the full waste collection waiver would continue for this year, ‘this cannot be sustained into future years’.

“The provision of a waste waiver, in its current format, is financially unsustainable. Measures have already been taken to reduce operating costs. “In addition, the waiver as it is currently constructed, detracts from the Council’s objective of maximising waste recycling and there is clear evidence that the grant of a full waiver is giving rise to some abuse of the system which must be addressed,” the City Manager states in his financial review.

He outlined that the Council waiver subsidy amounted to €800,000 in 2007, this had risen to €1.1m in 2008, while the projected figure for 2009 was now €1.6m.

“The total net operating deficit of the household waste collection service is therefore approximately €2m. This is utterly unsustainable and radical action is required to prevent a financial deterioration, which may become irreversible,” said Mr. MacGrath.

He also warned that the ongoing provision of the waiver would ultimately undermine the provision of the household waste collection service.

Mr. MacGrath said in previous reports he also noted “in recognising and accepting the plight of low income families”, that the provision of a waste waiver was effectively an income support which would be more appropriate to the role of social welfare services.

The stance of the manager is likely to bring him into conflict with some councillors and already ‘swords were drawn’ at this week’s City Council meeting when…