Kent waste centres face closure to save costs

Household waste and recycling sites across Kent face closure and reduced hours to save money

Four waste centres in Kent are facing closure as the county council seeks to save money.

Recycling centres in Dartford, Faversham, Maidstone and at Richborough near Sandwich would all shut permanently under one option.

Other plans include shutting three sites and reducing hours at 10 others, as part of £55m worth of savings.

The leader of Dartford Borough Council has started a petition to save the site in his district.

Susan Carey says Kent County Council faces bankruptcy without savings such as this

The council said the costs for its services has risen by £200m.

Susan Carey, Kent County Council's cabinet member for environment, said the savings have to be made to ensure the authority's financial survival.

She said: "If somebody's got a better way of making the savings, I'm very open to talking about that, but we really have to make those savings otherwise there won't be any services. We'll have gone bankrupt."

Dartford council leader Jeremy Kite said the plans were "not very green"

Dartford Borough Council leader Jeremy Kite has more than 1,300 signatures on his petition to keep the Dartford site open.

He said: "If this were to close, the people who use it would face a very long journey right across the borough to Gravesend.

"That's not very green, to put them on the roads. They're some of the most congested in the country."

The proposals are to be considered by the county council's environment and transport cabinet committee on 23 May.

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