HASLEMERE Town Council’s campaign to prevent Surrey County Council axing the town’s weekly landfill waste collection at Wey Hill fairground car park got off to a strong start on Saturday.

Mayor Melanie Odell and fellow town councillors counted hundreds of cars arriving laden with rubbish and the protest petition, which calls on Surrey to provide the town with an equivalent waste disposal service to Godalming, Farnham and Cranleigh, rather than make residents take their landfill

rubbish to Witley Community Recycling Centre, gathered pages of signatures.

Mrs Odell said: “Many people expressed concern over the cost to the community through petrol and vehicle costs, and to the environment with hundreds of cars travelling a 15-mile round trip and using the smaller

roads around Witley.

The county council plans to axe the dustcart service from September 26 and cabinet member for environment Mike Goodman showed no signs of wanting to change the date in his response last week to the mayor’s letter of protest

fired off a few days earlier.

Mr Goodman estimated Surey’s cost-cutting move would save £59,524. He said: “Much of the material that is discarded as rubbish can in fact be recycled.

“Additionally, the vast majority of residents who use the dustcart service arrive by car, so the journeys are not fully avoided.”

County councillor Nikki Barton said: “I fully support Haslemere Town Council’s

petition to reverse the decision by Surrey to withdraw the Saturday dustcart service.

“I have lobbied the cabinet member and officers responsible for the decision, but the harsh reality is the county council has had its central government funding cut yet again.

“There are cuts across every Surrey directorate, with over £3m to be shed from

the waste management budget alone.

“I have confirmed with Waverley Borough Council that all residents can have

more than one blue recycling wheelie bin by contacting Waverley Borough Council, and any recycling that doesn’t fit into the wheelie bins can be left

out for collection.

“In addition, residents can leave out any excess black bin bags next to their black wheelie bag and they will be collected.”