Backlash over weekend skip closures

Orkney Islands Council has said that the “rare occasions” which has led to the closure of civic amenity sites “cannot be avoided”.

The local authority was responding this week to criticism from disgruntled Facebook users, who hit out at the council after the latest closure of the Hatston civic amenity site.

It has been a recurring theme over recent months for OIC to announce the closure of civic amenity sites in Orkney due to skips being full, particularly at the weekend.

The early closure of the Hatston site on Sunday was caused by skips reaching capacity, as people had clear outs and tidied up gardens over the weekend.

Following the announcement of the latest closure, social media users expressed their concern at the frequency that the recycling centres have been closed early over the past few months. 

One Facebook user said: “It worked far better when it was open in the evenings during the week with far less people having to go to the recycling centre at the weekend. This resulted in far less early closures on a Sunday. 

“Time the opening hours were returned to opening in the evenings which was changed without proper consultation which is very poor but not surprising.”

Read the full story in The Orcadian, available online and in shops.