30 March 2020
A Thank You to Our Collection Crews
The outbreak of Coronavirus (COVID-19) has led to reduced resources across waste services in Essex.
Local councils, like us, are working hard to minimise disruption to residents. However, some councils have already made the decision to temporarily suspend elements of the waste service in order to maintain public health and safety.
As a frontline service, refuse and recycling collection crews are unable to work from home. Despite the reduction in staff levels, they continue to work tirelessly to ensure a service is maintained for residents during this extraordinary time.
Alongside other critical services these key workers are working hard on the frontline every day to ensure our bins, bags and boxes are collected.
Cllr Adrian Fluker, Leader of Maldon District Council; said: “I want to say a special thank you and extend my appreciation to each and every member of the Suez collection crew here in the Maldon District, for their effort and dedication to maintain vital services for our residents.
We can all do our bit to support others in these unprecedented times. I know that some of us have even been putting messages of support in our windows to say thanks and let them know they are appreciated. We are asking all residents to be understanding and act responsibly during this time.”
Ways you can support your collection crews:
- Please maintain at least 2 meters and don’t approach collection crews
- Please do not put additional waste out for collection as we cannot collect this. If every household puts out more waste than usual and we picked this up, the collection vehicles would fill up quicker. This would result in some households not having their waste collected, as well as placing additional strain on collection crews
- Please continue to treat collection crews with respect
- Please place your bins, boxes and bags at the kerbside ready for your collection
- Please be mindful where you park your car on collection day. With more people at home, residential roads are busier with parked cars making it harder for collection vehicles to get through.
If you are self-isolating, either as a precaution or because you are confirmed to have Coronavirus (COVID-19), you should follow this advice:
- Double bag all personal waste such as used tissues and disposable cleaning cloths, securely in plastic bags or bin liners.
- Store these bags separately to other waste for at least 72 hours before placing in your general rubbish collection.
- Regular household recycling and waste should be treated as normal.
You can keep up to date with any changes to your waste and recycling services in Essex by following @loveessexuk on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram or visit www.loveessex.org/coronavirus