HACKNEY COUNCIL has saved £50,000 a year by dumping its free skip service.

Abuse of the scheme by builders and tipping around the huge iron dumpsters doomed the popular scheme.

Another factor was complaints about noise — the thudding sound of skips being unloaded from a skip-carrier.

Rubbish fell on the pavement when skips were emptied, so Hackney had to pay for extra crews to clean up.

Tradespeople were sneaking van-loads of construction waste into the skips, which is illegal. Cleanup councillor Feryal Demirci told Loving Dalston: “Residents told us they did not like the noise, traffic and mess around the skip sites, and it was impossible for us [council staff] to separate items for reuse or recycling.”

About 300 tonnes of waste a year were put in the skips and almost 50% could be reused or recycled.

Until October 2013 skips were dropped off at one of 50 locations three times a year at a cost of more than £50,000.

The council denied that the ending of free public skips would result in a return to a 1980s-style outbreak of mass dumping and flytipping.

Loving Dalston has, however, noticed a seeming rise in tipping around the borough this year, including the Clapton incident described in the caption at right.

Hackney residents can dispose of bulky waste at:

* Islington recycling, 40 Hornsey Street N7 8HU

* Waltham Forest recycling, South Access Road E17 8BS

* Gateway Road household recycling, Gateway Road, Leyton E10 5BY

* Park View Road recycling, Park View Road, Tottenham N17 9AY.

Every household can book by phone or on line four bulky-waste collections PA of up to five items per collection. Hackney council makes garden-waste collections fortnightly. Use brown bins or recyclable bags, which can be ordered by phone. Qsa Homestore will collect reusable furniture.

Hamish Scott 040815

* Backstory: Hackney tries harder with kitchen waste

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