Household waste recycling centres run by Derbyshire County Council will reopen with restrictions in place from Monday 18 May – but residents are only advised to visit them if they have waste they cannot store safely at home.
The safety of site staff, residents and the wider community is the number one priority for the county council and new measures are being introduced at all of its sites so that users and staff can stick to social distancing rules to help prevent the spread of coronavirus and to help manage traffic. These include a traffic control system based on odd and even number plates and limiting the number of vehicles on site at any one time.
To help the centres run smoothly users are being asked to follow these golden rules:
· Only travel to your local recycling centre if it is essential because you can’t continue to store waste safely at home without it causing injury or harm. No other reason for the journey would be considered a legitimate purpose. Please use your kerbside bins and bulky waste services where possible or store until sites are operating as normal.
· If your journey is essential then check which day you can access the recycling centres based on your vehicle number plate and please be prepared to queue as social distancing measures mean fewer vehicles will be allowed on site at any one time.
· Avoid taking excessive amounts of waste to keep vehicles moving in and out as quickly as possible to help reduce queue times. That means leaving vans and trailers at home for the time being.
· Wear protective gloves, appropriate footwear and clothing and only bring what you can safely handle as staff will not be able to help you carry your waste as they normally would.
· Keep the number of people on site to a minimum by travelling alone – unless you need another adult from your household to help carry your waste – stay at least two metres away from staff and other users and wash your hands when you get home.
· Stay at home if you have coronavirus symptoms in the last 14 days, are self-isolating or at high risk of contracting the virus.
Vehicles will be allowed into recycling centres on certain days depending on whether the last number on their number plate is odd or even. Vehicles with 0, 2, 4, 6, 8 as the last number will be allowed in on even numbered dates in the month and those with 1, 3, 5, 7 and 9 will be allowed in on odd numbered dates in the month.
The county council’s recycling centres open seven days a week from 8.30am-6pm in the following locations: Ashbourne, Bolsover, Bretby, Chesterfield, Glossop, Ilkeston, Loscoe, Northwood (Darley Dale) and Waterswallows - near Buxton.
They do not accept business or trade waste. For more information visit www.derbyshire.gov.uk/recyclingcentres
