Assurances after heavy snow forecast

By fweelen

With more heavy snow forecast for this weekend assurances have been given to Mendip residents

that contingency measures are in place.

At the cabinet meeting of Mendip District Council on Monday night Steve Reed from the Somerset Waste Partnership answered criticism from councillors about the length of time it took teams to collect rubbish from homes across the district during last month's big snow freeze-up.

Councillor Tom Killen asked why was it that garden and recycling waste was collected from homes when normal refuse was not collected for several weeks in some areas.

Mr Reed said teams were instructed to collect in places where they felt it was safe to do so. Teams had to walk across icy pavements and roads carrying or dragging bins in conditions where it had not been safe to do so. "We had to make a sensible assessment," he said. Many of the collection vehicles had got stuck in the snow and caused more transport mayhem and congestion, he said "Our crews knew better than anyone where it was the safe to go," said Mr Reed. But he assured them that the backlog of waste was swiftly collected once roads were safe to negotiate.

Mendip was the worst effected district for snowfall in the whole of Somerset.

"I think our crews did a very good job getting out to collect as quickly as they could," he said.

Councillor Jim Barron urged Mendip Council to use local radio stations more to keep up residents up to date about the whole situation if heavy snow falls again.

Mr Reed said the radio stations while advertising school closures everywhere had not seemed particularly interested in getting information about rubbish collections. "We will be pushing harder for that in the future," he said.

Councillors expressed utmost praise and congratulations for all the crews across Mendip for achieving what they did in the most difficult conditions.

Mr Reed assured the meeting that contingency plans would come into operation should another freeze occur. "You have to manage these situations as they unfold," he said.