From Tim M

Thursday, 11 August 2016

It's the new regime, started last week. Might take a while to bed down - but you can recycle so much more! Call customer first, they'll arrange a collection.

From Robert Collins

Tuesday, 16 August 2016

No recycle collections for 2 1/2 weeks here in Mytholm, despite repeated requests.

Today our neighbour was told by the council's phone operator that reports of missed collection have to be submitted within 48 hours or they will not be actioned and the waste becomes our own responsibility(!)

When he asked about the danger of rats and vermin, due to weeks-old rotting food piled up outside our houses in the height of summer, the council operator brusquely said we should contact environmental health and immediately hung up.

So on behalf of a street of four family homes, I've spent my afternoon dealing with the foul and rotten waste, flies and maggots, with none of the proper protective gear the contractors have.

A look on Calderdale Council's social media reveals many, many people in the same situation. This has gone way beyond a new system bedding-down.

From Davd Mack

Wednesday, 17 August 2016

I see from Calderdale's website that they have now changed what recycling goes in which container, and that some people have had their collection day changed. Yet I have heard nothing directly from the Council which tells me what the changes are. I still have the card delivered at the end of last year setting out the arrangements for the whole of 2016.

I imagine there must be many residents across Calderdale who are unaware of the new arrangements, and who are putting their recycling in the wrong containers, or putting it out for collection on the wrong days.

It wouldn't be difficult for the Council or the new contractors to have delivered information about the new arrangements as part of routine collections. So why haven't they?

From Andy C

Wednesday, 17 August 2016

No recycling collection since July 27th. Followed the reporting procedure, been promised action within two days. Nothing.

I suspect that Suez or whatever they're called have kept the contract based on a promise of a more efficient service - which they are providing by reducing the service.

All well and good trumpeting their shiny new massive collection lorries but many properties in Calderdale are unreachable by them.

I feel sorry for the crews who are probably being hounded to complete routes within unreasonable timescales. We are now putting all recyclable waste in the refuse bags (which are being collected) because the recycling containers are completely full.

I'm not hopeful of this being resolved soon. All in all a rubbish service!

From Mike S

Thursday, 18 August 2016

We got a card in the post from Calderdale with the new list of what to put where and a new day for collection. The first week of operation, collection was on the old day for recycling but no general refuse collection. The next week the recycle man told us Calderdale had cocked it up and the collection day was the same as before but the new recycle guidelines were correct. General refuse was collected 9 days late on the Saturday morning.

I have absolute confidence that our elected members will sort it out soon.

From Jane K

Thursday, 18 August 2016

We've had similar problems in Hebden. I didn't receive any notification that my recycling day had been changed and they turned up very early the day before. Last week they didn't turn up at all and I emailed the council to report this. Collection was made last Sunday instead.

What I find extremely annoying is that each time the rubbish collectors have turned up they inexplicably open my 'outhouse' (ex toilet room from yonks ago) and leave it unlocked. My rubbish is in a black bin in a communal bin area and certainly not in there. Why then is it being opened?

From Myra James

Thursday, 18 August 2016

The bad experiences related here sound pretty annoying. However, in fairness to Calderdale/Sita, I have to report that so far all has gone swimmingly where I live. We received a card a few weeks before the change, with all the info on the new service and change of collection day, and those collections have so far been carried out as advertised. Perhaps we are just lucky!

From Lisa Talbot

Friday, 19 August 2016

I threatened Calderdale council with the Ombudsman eventually, and surprise surprise our recycling was collected the following day! Nothing since however, it is a shambles and not what I expect with the amount of council tax paid each month.

From Eleanor Land

Saturday, 20 August 2016

What an apt title, Suez was a crisis of cock ups. Maybe they should change the name and then we"d get a service. My husband spotted the Recyling lorry in a lay by near turning circle with operatives having a fag, they should have been collecting my recycling. Two online forms and a telephone call later it is still festering at the top of my drive. The carefully packed paper and thin card is soaked, the disgusting food bins have been boiled and are now being steamed, it's Suez version of a slow cooker.

From Ann Libby

Saturday, 20 August 2016

What is going on here? We have had no trouble at all until the new contractors took over then it was down hill all the way. Glad we are not alone! Thanks to Dave Young for arranging a collection on Saturday 13th. Nothing since then so we wait for Calderdale to sort it. Our Council Tax must buy something!

From Mark H

Monday, 22 August 2016

We voted for this.

From Mike Stone

Monday, 22 August 2016

I blame Thatcher. If they don't come & collect soon I'm just going to dump it in reception at the HB Town Hall.

From Ann Libby

Monday, 22 August 2016

Still no collection and there is no information as to what is going on. When can we expect our re cycling to be reinstated and in the meantime what are we to do with our waste food? Surely we can't be expected to just leave it outside. It's a health hazard.

From Julie C

Tuesday, 23 August 2016

Hebden Town Hall is not the place to protest. It isn't after all owned or run by Calderdale Council now!

The people to focus on appear to be Suez Environment Uk Ltd, based at Suez House, Grenfell Rd, Maidenhead, Berks. SL6 1ES or you might try their parent company based in Paris - which as they proudly state 'has a presence over 5 continents, employs 80,000 people and has an annual turnover of 14 billion euros.' Their press office is reachable at by email or perhaps you might try Faxing the head office in Paris with a nice picture of your accumulated rubbish Fax.+33(0)1 5881 25 00

The parent company is to be found at www.suez-environnement.com
Group Registered Office,
SUEZ
TOUR CB21
16, place de l'Iris,
92040 Paris La Defense,
CEDEX. France.

Anyway - I guess what I'm saying is blame Globalisation, not the Town Hall in Hebden who are definitely innocent.

From John L

Tuesday, 23 August 2016

Yes, it is SITA now SUEZ (!) who have been employed to do this work. But it remains the responsibility of Calderdale councillors. They signed them up. Interestingly, there doesn't seem to be a single response from any councillor on this thread, Hebden Royd or Calderdale. They are happy enough to make their presence known when they want us to elect them. When there is a serious problem like this, silence.

And just what is the point of reporting a missed collection? Nothing ever happens.

From Mike S

Wednesday, 24 August 2016

Recycle bins and dustbin out all day today. Still there, so it looks like the confusion continues. As the last general refuse collection was on a Saturday (9 days late) we are no longer sure what the collection day/week is any more, so we will just wait and see.

From Dave R

Thursday, 25 August 2016

Whilst it is understandable that people are annoyed that their recycling hasn't been collected, I fail to see how anyone would let food waste etc pile up until it was a 'health risk'.

The recycling centre is still open, even though most of us will have less need to visit it once the recycling is up and running. I must currently do several trips a month with cardboard, yoghurt pots etc.

The new system means I can probably reduce the need to go to the tip to several times a year. Great!

Meanwhile, short-term why not bag up your rubbish and take it yourself?
After all its almost as far to drive as the Town Hall.

Give the new system time to settle in at least.

From Lisa Talbot

Thursday, 25 August 2016

That's assuming that everyone has cars and the time to do it. And when its been rained on not everyone wants to take soggy stuff in their cars. Also when you have chronic health problems as i do, you also may not have the energy!

From Eleanor Land

Saturday, 27 August 2016

I fail to see why council tax payers should allow time for the new recycling collection to settle in. These contractors are being paid large amounts of money for these contracts, I am paying a huge amount of council tax. If they can't deliver on their contract they should be fined. There have been mutltiple problems with this new system and the blame lays at the door of Suez. Why should householders bail them out by doing their job for them.

From Dave R

Monday, 29 August 2016

Indeed why should we do the job for them?

To reduce the risk of a rat infestation?
To get rid of the stench?
To keep our gardens/yards/front of house tidy?

Bill the council for your missed collection by all means, but sitting watching your waste rot 'because it's not your job' doesn't appeal to me.

From Eleanor Land

Wednesday, 31 August 2016

Your solution may suit you, but people who don't have transport can't make that choice

From F Minto

Wednesday, 31 August 2016

I reported to Calderdale council, that my rubbish hadn't be taken for 5 weeks and also found out that my neighbours (3) had also been missed. A council worker - not Suez - came and collected our rubbish about a week later.

Slightly concerned about a European company based in Paris are collecting our recycling/rubbish. Which will either agree contracts in Euros, or will change the price due to Brexit which is bound to increase costs. I felt that recycling needed to be locally based but big enough to achieve economies of scale. Does Suez really meet that obvious requirement?

From Mark Astbury

Friday, 2 September 2016

Before you all get hung up about waste services in Brexieland being provided by a French company, I can remember the locally based one that did it before. That was more like a littering service than recycling with much being left scattered across the street. I think much of the quality of the service is down to the terms of the contract negotiated with Soyez-Suez by the Council, something which was "messed up" in the past.

Where I stay in France the waste collection is done by the same company, somethings are different - in rural areas you have to put your unrecycled waste bagged into communal wastebins like the commercial ones here, and recycling boxes have to be taken to communal collection points. But in towns they have individual wheeliebins and much is the same as here. Glass is collected in bottle banks, normally in car parks, but can be put into the recycling collection.

However they get a weekly collection of waste, recycling is collected as one whole and then sorted so the onus is not on the householder to do it (the same happens in some English authorities). If you go to the local tip it has people willing to help you, including unloading white goods and not simply stand and stare or chat to co-workers.

Rates of recycling far exceed what is achieved here and for this the French are seperately billed about £100 a year per household.

Oh and the parking services in Calderdale are run by Da Vinci who run the toll roads in southern France.

From Robert Collins

Tuesday, 6 September 2016

All the help I got from the operatives at the local (Eastwood) tip was some sanctimonious criticism as I unloaded a month's worth of uncollected recycling and food waste from a street of 4 houses.

In another twist, while I was driving to the tip several recycling containers (including all of mine!) were stolen. I assume by someone whose own containers were full to overflowing.

I have requested replacements but I'm not holding my breath.

I think this fiasco has massively set back the cause of recycling in Calderdale.

From Eleanor Land

Monday, 24 October 2016

I ordered extra recycling bags for paper and plastics 8 wks ago, unsurprisingly I have received nothing from the council. I now spend a lot of my time working as an unpaid recycling operative, I stand outside in a Force 9 gale with my complicated list of what goes in the numerous containers. I then haul them up my steep drive, where the paper bag is buffeted by gales and soaked through.

I am paying nearly twice as much council tax as when I lived in Leicestershire, where they have one green wheelie bin in which you can deposit all your recycling. They have the same system in Lincolnshire and Norfolk, where I have just holidayed.

Why are we lumbered with this antedeluvian system, and why at the age of 60+ do I have to be an upaid council recycling operative.