Connon Bridge household waste and recycling centre will once again be taking DIY waste from the end of August. 

The reopening to DIY waste signifies a u-turn on council policy, after the site was stopped from allowing it in January this year following an amendment to controlled waste (England and Wales) regulations 2012 by the government in November 2023.

Sites such as Connon Bridge, Bodmin and Launceston were no longer permitted to accept asbestos, plasterboard, soil, rubble, toilets, bidets, sinks or tyres whereas Saltash was able to take the equivalent of up to eight bags of soil or rubble, four sheets of plasterboard or asbestos free of charge.

Cllr Jane Pascoe for Liskeard South and Dobwalls said: “The consequences of that decision were far reaching with fly tipping in the countryside increasing almost immediately. 

“Residents were dismayed and anxious that they were being asked to make long journeys to other facilities, to dispose of their waste responsibly, when previously they had taken DIY Household Waste to Connon Bridge.”

She added “The volume of traffic has increased at the Saltash HWRC, causing problems on the highway and in the facility.”

According to local businesses in the area, the traffic queues disrupted their trade with local business owner Steve Baker, from Baker’s Cornish Bakehouse, saying: “If customers can’t get to us, it all stops.”

The u-turn is not enough for some effected Saltash businesses who believe a new site is needed for the council’s HWRC at Tamar View Industrial Estate which is subcontracted to Suez

Rob Carron from Certini Bikes, located directly next to the centre, is less optimistic about the return to business as usual. 

According to Rob, the site is too small for the capacity needed for Saltash and won’t change until they move to a different location. 

He said: “Ever since the day it was set up, it’s been too small. We’ve had customers who can’t get in or out of our site.

“Waitrose and B&M both struggle to get lorries on and off their sites due to the congestion. It’s constantly bad all the time. 

“They have to close the site to compact the waste or change bins, that means traffic waiting at least 20 minutes until they reopen again. With the new estate at Treledan, the problem is only going to get worse.”

Cornwall Councillor for the Saltash Trematon division which covers the site, Martin Worth, said: “Residents are always best served if they go earlier or later in the day avoiding peak times of later morning and early afternoon. 

“We are constantly reviewing demand and are looking to implement means to further improve the service. The changes at Connon Bridge are good news for our Saltash HWRC.”