A SUFFOLK council cabinet member has defended a scheme to introduce new wheelie bins for the collection of recyclable goods which has been branded "a total recipe for disaster".

A SUFFOLK council cabinet member has defended a scheme to introduce new wheelie bins for the collection of recyclable goods which has been branded "a total recipe for disaster".

New blue wheelie bins will be issued to households in Haverhill in the summer to recycle dry goods.

But town councillor Mabon Dane feels the plans are impractical.

Mr Dane said: "A lot of the residents in Haverhill are not very happy about these blue bins. This has taken them by surprise, as it was unannounced and they were not consulted. Many of the estates in Haverhill are like rabbit warrens, with small gardens and little parking space, and residents are now going to be forced to find places to store an extra bin."

"Elderly and disabled people already have great difficulty with wheelie bins, and now they will have to cope with a third. All in all it is going to be a total recipe for disaster."

Mr Dane said three different collection days for the brown, black and blue bins, would confuse residents, and could be hazardous to road users and pedestrians.

But Jennifer Hart, cabinet member for environment with St Edmundsbury Borough Council, said: "The system is based on extensive trials carried out last year – we tried various methods, asked people what they thought of them, listened to their answers and devised a scheme based on the one they liked best."

"That's consultation – and to suggest that people in Haverhill are not able to cope with a system warmly welcomed elsewhere is frankly an insult to their intelligence, and ours as well. Instead of waiting for the future with trepidation, Cllr Dane should embrace his role as one of his community's leaders.

"He should help spread the message that we must reduce the waste we produce and recycle as much as possible if we are to hand on a Haverhill that's worth living in to future generations."

Mr Dane added that doorstep collection boxes or recycling banks would provide a better option.

"This administration do not think of the implications of their decision-making. The Government has paid for these wheelie bins, and as it was a freebie, St Edmundsbury Borough Council simply went with it," he said.

St Edmundsbury Borough Council said the blue bins would be provided this summer after a successful joint funding bid for £2 million Government cash with Forest Heath District Council.

"Extensive trials were carried out on various methods of collection last year, and when the results were analysed this was the most favoured option. We know there is overwhelming support for efficient recycling in the borough and this scheme will enable everybody to take part," a spokeswoman said.

A full launch explaining the scheme will take place in the summer.