New opening times at recycling centres

New opening times at recycling centres

23 September 2020

THE opening hours of the district’s three recycling centres are to be extended within weeks.

Centres in Downpatrick, Castlewellan and Ballynahinch — which were closed at the height of the coronavirus pandemic — are currently open just five days a week, but this is to be extended to include Saturdays.

The news was confirmed at last night’s meeting of Newry, Mourne and Down Council’s Neighbourhood Services Committee.

But what is not clear is that if the busy centres will return to opening every day of the week as the local authority has not yet decided if the centres will open on Sundays, traditionally one of their most busiest days.

One of the reasons council officials looked at potential Sunday closure for the facilities in Downpatrick, Ballynahinch and Castlewellan was that, the local authority’s seven other civic amenity sites in Camlough, Crossmaglen, Kilkeel, Newry, Newtownhamilton, Warrenpoint and Hilltown, already close on Sunday. 

These sites were previously under the management of the former Newry and Mourne Council.

News of the potential Sunday closure came after it was announced recently that the district is recycling just over 51 per cent of its waste, passing the Northern Ireland average for the first time. The total amount of waste being recycled locally has increased by five per cent.

Since the local recycling centres have reopened, staff have reported them to be “exceptionally busy” and ratepayers will welcome confirmation news that they will soon open on Saturdays between 10am and 4pm.

Councillors were told at last night’s committee meeting that once Saturday opening has been reintroduced, consideration will be given to a return of the opening hours at all recycling centres prior to the coronavirus pandemic.

Council officials have confirmed that in order to facilitate the next phase of the reopening programme, they are currently in the process of recruiting additional agency staff.

It was also made clear last night that the reopening programme is being kept under constant review and that successfully achieving this depends on the continuing mitigation of Covid-19 risks and the continuing availability if staff.

Consultations with staff and trade union representatives is also a key part of the reopening programme.

Council officials say that the reopening of the local centres on Saturdays will take place “in a matter of weeks” with the public kept fully informed of future service changes.

Downpatrick area councillor, Dermot Curran, said ratepayers will be delighted that Saturday opening is on the horizon and he paid tribute to staff at all the council recycling centres for their efforts, particularly over recent weeks when they returned to work.

“The staff are working on the frontline and the public also deserve credit for adhering to the guidelines in place when using the local centres,” he said.

“The recycling centres play a crucial role and are heavily used, helping people get rid of their waste in a safe, environmentally friendly way. The planned Saturday opening is good news for people who work during the week and can’t access any of the local centres.”

Cllr Curran said the district was fortunate to have three ultra-modern recycling centres which have been provided at a cost of several million pounds.

“The new centre at the Flying Horse Road in Downpatrick is extensively used and the large facility is visited by ratepayers across a wider area. They will be particularly delighted that it won’t be long before they will be able to use to this centre and its sister facilities in Castlewellan and Ballynahinch on Saturdays,” he continued.

“It is clear that the substantial investment in the local recycling centres to provide ultra-modern facilities has been worth every penny as they meet the increasing demands of people across the district.”