New rubbish collection has had issues - councillor

A councillor said she did not want people to think "it’s been a wonderful sailing experience on calm waters"

The new food waste and rubbish collection service in Cornwall has been challenging, a councillor has said.

Carol Mould, Cornwall Council's portfolio holder for neighbourhoods, said at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday that she did not want people to think "it’s been a wonderful sailing experience on calm waters".

The system, which was introduced in October 2023, collects food waste weekly and black bag waste and recycling on a fortnightly rotation in Mid Cornwall, South East Cornwall and West Cornwall.

In August, the system sparked an "abandoned bin" problem in some areas of the county.

Ms Mould said nothing "so major" had happened that the council had not been able to deal with, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

She said: "Sometimes the volumes of calls have been challenging, but it is testament to the waste team who have managed this rollout to an exceptional standard and we are well on our way with it.

"The bins are going out and every challenge that we get given we seem to be able to resolve, but that’s not to say there aren’t some that take longer than others.

"We expected it to be slightly choppy and that’s the way it’s proven to be."

New collections are set to start in North Cornwall in the autumn and in Mid West Cornwall next year.