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A Teesside council is facing backlash after it announced that garden waste collections would be suspended due to extreme temperatures.
Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council informed residents on Thursday (August 13), that garden waste collections would be suspended.
The council said the decision was necessary to protect workers during the hot weather and ensure it could prioritise collecting household waste, food waste and recycling as normal.
The garden waste collections that were due today (Friday, August 14), have now been postponed and will instead be carried out at the end of the current subscription period.
The council stressed that residents would not lose a collection as a result of the decision.
In a statement, it said: "The decision to cancel tomorrow's garden waste collection will create additional capacity within our teams to ensure that all other household waste, food waste and recycling commodities can continue to be collected, while also helping us to protect our staff working in the extreme heat."
But residents questioned why they were paying for the service after being told their scheduled collection would not go ahead.
One Facebook user said: "Tomorrow's forecast high in North Skelton, which is due for a (paid for) collection on the 14th is 26 degrees. If that sets the bar for non-collections, then we are going to have to have a conversation about a refund."
Another said: "So I’m left with rotting garden waste for another two weeks after paying for a service. Another collection at the end isn’t going to help now."
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Redcar council also said there had been a drop in demand for garden waste collections in recent weeks, which it believes is linked to the prolonged spell of hot weather.
However, many residents have shared their frustration at the last minute cancellation and the reasons for doing so.
One resident questioned why collections couldn't be reorganised to avoid the extreme heat, saying: "Maybe change the collection to evening or very early morning. Other warm countries do this. Can’t we learn from them?"
Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council apologised to residents for the inconvenience.