Where is all the rubbish going now in Hastings?

On a recent trip to the Pebsham waste tip to deposit, amongst other things, a small washbasin, I was informed that it officially constituted hardcore and would therefore be subject to a £4 charge. Needless to say, I declined to part with the requested sum.

In the course of conversation with the member of staff who, I hasten to say, was extremely courteous, it transpired that, before October 1, the hardcore skip used to be filled to the brim in a day and a half. However, since the introduction of the aforementioned fee, not one skip change has been necessary – the skip which was in place on October 1 was still there on October 12, only partially full!

So, if my calculations are correct, under the previous regulations, the day of my visit should have seen the eighth skip being put in place. Now, only one skip has been required.

I doubt very much that the source of hardcore has suddenly and mysteriously dried up since October 1, so we are left with the somewhat worrying question of where have the other seven skiploads been deposited?

And this only applies to hardcore – soil, plasterboard, asbestos and tyres are also subject to charges.

I presume the quantities of these commodities arriving at the tip have also decreased and, as with hardcore, other ‘destinations’ have been identified and used!

It is often said that desperate people, in their unfortunate condition, resort to irrational and senseless actions.

It is generally accepted that East Sussex County Council (ESCC) is desperate over its financial situation and has accordingly adopted a ridiculous and illogical method of trying to cut monetary corners by making these imbecilic changes to the waste policy.

Perhaps when ESCC realises that (a) the hoped-for income will not materialise as fewer and fewer people make use of the official sites and (b) the cost of clearing up the inevitable increase in fly-tipping will rise inexorably, they may care to reconsider precisely just what they have done!