EAST Hampshire District CouncilÕs beleaguered waste contractors are facing fines of at least £35,000 after a disastrous start to the new refuse collection system.
In the first week of the new system the district council switchboard was jammed with householders ringing to complain that their dustbins had not been collected.
And three weeks later the council was still receiving complaints from some residents.
Steve Bradley, spokesman for EHDC told The Herald: ÒThere is a default clause in the contract which allows us to impose fines for bins not collected and so far we estimate that Onyx should be fined around £35,000.Ó
Council leader Elizabeth Cartwright told Liss parish councillors that Onyx had promised to catch up with the service and have the collection system running smoothly by the beginning of July.
ÒThere was no logic in the collection rounds and so I understand that the rounds needed to be changed, but I feel that Onyx did not put enough resources into implementing the alterations,Ó she said.
She added that there were still some residents whose bins were not being collected and Onyx would be fined for all the missed bins.
ÒWe are doing our best to get it straight and we have seconded an experienced officer to Onyx to help,Ó she said.
But Mrs Cartwright said that in fairness the World Cup had not helped the early stages of the new collection service because she believed some waste collection staff had either arrived late or left early to catch the matches.
But the council leader said the new Alternate Waste Collection was proving a success, with householders quickly adapting to what could and could not be placed in the recycling bins.
She made a special plea to residents: ÒI am asking the public for patience. I appreciate how frustrating it has been, but please be patient, because this is going to work.Ó
Onyx has taken out advertisements all over East Hampshire, apologising for the problems.