Residents in South Angus have been told the council-run general waste skips will not return.
Carnoustie Independent Brian Boyd’s motion to bring back general waste skips in either Carnoustie or Monifieth was rejected after being submitted “in the interests of goodwill and fairness”.
The motion – which was being brought before Angus Council for the third time – was defeated following an amendment by Montrose Independent Mark Salmond which was against any changes.
General waste skips were removed from centres at Brechin, Carnoustie, Kirriemuir and Monifieth on February 4 this year and replaced by containers for the collection of recyclable materials.
Only the bigger centres at Arbroath, Forfar and Montrose continue to accept non-recyclable waste.
As a result of industrial action, general waste skips were temporarily returned to the county’s four smaller recycling centres to assist residents who suffered disruption to their regular bin collections.
The general waste skips were removed on Sunday following the suspension of strike action by bin workers and a resumption of scheduled waste collections.
The move leaves residents in South Angus again facing round trips of up to 40 miles to dump non-recyclable rubbish.
Mr Boyd said the removal of general waste skips was “discrimination” in South Angus which boasts the highest recycling rates in Angus.
He said there was now a “two-tier system” and general waste skips should instead be removed in other localities with poorer rates “to encourage more recycling”.
Carnoustie Independent David Cheape said it was “entirely nonsensical” that people in South Angus were being rewarded for being the county’s highest recylers with the removal of their general waste skips.
He said bringing the general waste skips back would give “equality for South Angus”.
Monifieth and Sidlaw SNP councillor Beth Whiteside said: “South Angus residents are in a unique position in Angus in not having access to a general waste facility in their own locality.
We’ve already heard members of the administration, notably Councillor Salmond, refer to a two-tier system, and argue for equity in parking charges.
“Well, it shouldn’t be news to you to see that what we have here in recycling is a two-tier system.”
Mr Salmond put forward an amendment and said scrapping the recycling re-design would send out “entirely the wrong message” to the people of Angus.
He said recycling was the future and “general waste has to be the past”.
Council leader David Fairweather said the decision to remove the waste disposal facilities had helped push recycling rates up to 63% – the percentage required to deliver the council’s £250,000 savings target.
“Recycling rates have gone up to 63% in the last couple of months so don’t tell me it isn’t working,” he said.
