... AND THEY’RE THE MAJORITY
Council officials have expressed shock after their crack Waste Compliance team discovered what everyone else in Edinburgh had been aware of for years.
A lot of businesses across the capital are rubbish at rubbish.
The CEC unit – 6 staff, 1 leader, and 4 wardens – began looking at trade waste disposal at the start of this month, especially in areas with on-street communal bins where the suspicion has been that commercial organisations get rid of rubbish at the taxpayer’s expense.
Officials found that of 191 businesses inspected, a mere 41 per cent were complying with regulations. Around 58 percent were unable to produce a contract at the time of the Council visit, and were given a week to get their act into gear or face prosecution.
Four businesses have been slapped with £200 fixed penalty notices for illegally depositing rubbish on the street.
Well done, CEC
Overflowing bins and waste-strewn pavements have been deplorably common sights across Edinburgh in recent years. Whilst this initiative doesn’t get the Council off the hook for missed, sloppy or too infrequent collections, or excuse members of the public who can’t resist squeezing in sofas and unwanted elephant carcasses in the dead of night, clamping down on those businesses which abuse the system is nevertheless a welcome step in the right direction.
We just hope officials now have the administrative and budgetary wherewithal to keep up the pressure and follow through with prosecutions when merited.
Environment Convener Lesley Hinds says she was ‘very surprised’ by these results:
In order to assist in this process I have written to Essential Edinburgh, the Federation of Small Businesses and other relevant responsible organisations to discuss how we can support responsible businesses and also best work together to ensure that the highest standards of cleanliness are achieved and maintained on the streets of Edinburgh.
Got a view? Tell us at spurtle@hotmail.co.uk and @theSpurtle and Facebook
---------------------
Andrew Heald How can anyone be "surprised" by the findings ?!
@theSpurtle and that presumably excludes the tradesmen who dump rubbish in the bins when working on houses/flats
Colin McShane Your article astounds me. Businesses should of course not dump their rubbish in bins for residential use. Businesses however are tax payers (often as well as rate payers [for which in return they get very little!]) so for you to use the phrase 'at tax payers expense' is sensational & provocative to say the least. Furthermore, I do not for one minute believe that the ongoing issue with overflowing bins inc the recent absolutely appalling problems is down to business dumping. What we do all know & have really known for years is the Council are largely incompetent via their pie in the sky unachievable policies... I never thought I'd see the day when The Spurtle would be so easily taken in & assist the Council in smoke-screening as this article does!
Broughton Spurtle (1) Share your scepticism about CEC competence with waste collection and management. There is a great deal more that could be said about this. (2) Equally appalled by feckless and selfish idiocy of general public when disposing of rubbish as and when it most suits them. (3) But also very unimpressed by local businesses using communal bins for commercial refuse. That's a clear abuse of how locally raised tax is meant to be spent according to clearly established rules, and how domestic bins are meant to be used for convenience/hygiene of residents. (4) So. what's at issue isn't 'sensational and provocative reporting' but sensationally selfish behaviour by surprisingly large proportion of businesses in offloading business expenses onto locals. (5) Or is Spurtle missing something? If so, tell us where we've misunderstood.
Graeme Purves The Council might try emptying the bins.
Douglas Robertson Embra - a manky stinky place.