Urgent Rethink Over Bin Collections.. - 5th Aug 2009 1:21pm
Wirral councillor calls for urgent rethink over bin collections
WIRRAL residents are kicking up a stink again over maggots and mice gathering in their wheelie bins.
With warmer weather beginning to emerge, local councillors are once again being approached by householders who are increasingly unhappy about fortnightly bin collections.
There is concern at the growing incidence of smells and flies, while across the country many councils have begun to re-think the fortnightly collection policy.
Seacombe Cllr Adrian Jones told the Globe: “However fastidious people are at cleaning their bins the flies and the maggots still come and are hideous.
“Maybe a play on words might catch the eye of my fellow politicians. I’m fully in favour of the recycling initiative, but now that we have solid experience of fortnightly collections, I think we are going to have to look again at some of the problems.”
The former mayor added: “There are particular problems for people living in densely populated areas. Many of my Seacombe residents live in terraces without frontage and with only small yards behind.
“If they leave the bins in their yards, the smells and the flies are far too close to their kitchen windows, and there’s no escape from either.
“If they leave them on the pavements at the front, that causes a nuisance to everybody else.
“Many people overcome the problem by taking their refuse to the council tip, but not everybody has a car. I think we are going to have to re-think the whole idea of fortnightly collections for food waste.”
As though the annual return of flies and maggots isn’t enough, the councillor has also taken up the cause of several groups of residents with rodent infestations.
He told a recent meeting of the St Paul’s District Residents’ Association: “When the £33 charge for ridding a household of mice was introduced, the consequences perhaps weren’t anticipated.
“What now seems to be happening is that residents are paying the fee and their homes are cleared of the mice. But if the houses around them don’t all get cleared at the same time – and they won’t because not everybody can afford it – a new generation of mice from a few doors away just moves in.
“One gentleman whose mice had been eradicated last year showed me a large collection he’d trapped in a single week.
“I’ve taken this up with our environmental health team and they’ve been most helpful. They are going to assess the extent of the infestations by surveying the areas I’ve identified and they’ll liaise with the housing associations for a united approach wherever it’s appropriate.
“Fortunately, I haven’t yet been told of rats; it seems to be confined to mice at the moment. One of the problems is that people can’t always keep their bin lids closed, as the fortnightly collections mean they have too much to pack in. That allows the mice to hop in and have a wonderful feast.”
If you are having problems with mice, rats, or maggots, or with keeping your wheelie bins fresh, e-mail us at [email protected] or write to Maggots, Wirral Globe, Haymarket Court, Hinson Street, Birkenhead, CH41 5BX.
THE GLOBE
WIRRAL residents are kicking up a stink again over maggots and mice gathering in their wheelie bins.
With warmer weather beginning to emerge, local councillors are once again being approached by householders who are increasingly unhappy about fortnightly bin collections.
There is concern at the growing incidence of smells and flies, while across the country many councils have begun to re-think the fortnightly collection policy.
Seacombe Cllr Adrian Jones told the Globe: “However fastidious people are at cleaning their bins the flies and the maggots still come and are hideous.
“Maybe a play on words might catch the eye of my fellow politicians. I’m fully in favour of the recycling initiative, but now that we have solid experience of fortnightly collections, I think we are going to have to look again at some of the problems.”
The former mayor added: “There are particular problems for people living in densely populated areas. Many of my Seacombe residents live in terraces without frontage and with only small yards behind.
“If they leave the bins in their yards, the smells and the flies are far too close to their kitchen windows, and there’s no escape from either.
“If they leave them on the pavements at the front, that causes a nuisance to everybody else.
“Many people overcome the problem by taking their refuse to the council tip, but not everybody has a car. I think we are going to have to re-think the whole idea of fortnightly collections for food waste.”
As though the annual return of flies and maggots isn’t enough, the councillor has also taken up the cause of several groups of residents with rodent infestations.
He told a recent meeting of the St Paul’s District Residents’ Association: “When the £33 charge for ridding a household of mice was introduced, the consequences perhaps weren’t anticipated.
“What now seems to be happening is that residents are paying the fee and their homes are cleared of the mice. But if the houses around them don’t all get cleared at the same time – and they won’t because not everybody can afford it – a new generation of mice from a few doors away just moves in.
“One gentleman whose mice had been eradicated last year showed me a large collection he’d trapped in a single week.
“I’ve taken this up with our environmental health team and they’ve been most helpful. They are going to assess the extent of the infestations by surveying the areas I’ve identified and they’ll liaise with the housing associations for a united approach wherever it’s appropriate.
“Fortunately, I haven’t yet been told of rats; it seems to be confined to mice at the moment. One of the problems is that people can’t always keep their bin lids closed, as the fortnightly collections mean they have too much to pack in. That allows the mice to hop in and have a wonderful feast.”
If you are having problems with mice, rats, or maggots, or with keeping your wheelie bins fresh, e-mail us at [email protected] or write to Maggots, Wirral Globe, Haymarket Court, Hinson Street, Birkenhead, CH41 5BX.
THE GLOBE
and I've never had maggots or mice, just a bin that smells of rotten stuff. 
