'Victory for common sense'

4:30pm Friday 11th July 2008

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Victory was declared in the battle to save a popular recycling depot in Watford after Hertfordshire County Council withdrew plans for its closure in the face of overwhelming opposition.

The Wiggenhall Road Household Waste and Recycling Depot was earmarked for closure, due to a lack of space, layout problems and the proximity of other sites in Rickmansworth and Garston, following a recommendation by the council’s Waste Management Panel in March.

However, following protests from residents and councillors, and the promise of additional land to restructure the depot from Watford Borough Council, the panel made a U-turn on Wednesday and will now recommend to the county council that it remains open at a meeting on Monday, July 21.

Those who opposed the plan to close the depot, which would have saved the council £115,900 per year, have now hailed the decision as a “victory for common sense”.

They claimed residents would have to travel further in their cars to reach other depots, increasing traffic congestion and CO2 emissions.

Mike Castro, a member of Oxhey Hall Residents’ Association, said shutting the depot would have been a “big mistake”.

He said: “I feel they’ve made the right decision.

“It’s a very good result for everyone in the area, not just in Oxhey Hall but Watford in general.

“It seems they have had a ray of light appear in front of them and made what we think is the right decision. It’s good news all round. The absolute 100 per cent consensus was that closure of this site would have been a big mistake.”

County Councillor Stephen Giles-Medhurst said he was confident the threat to the depot was now over.

He said: “It is clear the site can be improved, and we told county officers that in March. It’s also clear that Derrick Ashley, the cabinet member for waste at County Hall, who now chairs the waste panel, would not have supported this withdrawal of the closure notice if he did not think the cabinet would confirm his view on July 21.”

County Councillor Derek Scudder added: “They seemed adamant it couldn’t be improved but when they came to look they realised what we were saying and they have come up with this plan to improve the site so it’s usable.

“The campaign residents ran was also crucial. The County Council was surprised by the reaction of local people and that made them take our offer seriously.”

Councillor Roy Clements said: “No matter what we did, it needed some additional land and Watford Borough Council has thankfully come up with some. I think this decision shows, both at a local and county level, the council does listen and does care.

“I think it’s a victory for common sense. It wasn’t fit for purpose and getting quite dangerous. This bit of extra land will enable us to reconfigure it.”

Councillor Nigel Bell added: “It’s a victory for local residents and petitioners.”

County Councillor Derrick Ashley, Executive Member for Planning, External Relations and Waste, said Watford’s offer of additional land resolved the site’s “operational difficulties”.

He said: “We will invest in improvements to the layout and safety of the site in order to deliver a standard of service that we feel is required by residents.”