Christmas Decorations competition

The winners of this years Christmas decoration competition is 32  Shutgate Meadow with second prize going to 26 Doniford Road. The winner of the best decorated shop window is Motorline. Congratulations to all our winners. The prizes will be presented at our meeting on 7th February.

Message from Somerset Waste Partnership

This week

SWP will deploy all available resources this week in an effort to maintain collection services and to catch up on any areas missed.

The advice to residents remains to place recycling and refuse out when safe to do so. SWP will aim to return to pick up fortnightly collected materials within five working days and weekly collected materials within two working days.

But with the situation complicated by Christmas and New Year changes to the schedule, if disruption prevents a full catch-up this week, homes missing collections may not be collected until their next scheduled pick-up in the first week of January.

SWP severe weather guidance sets out what will happen if collections are missed, including crews working overtime and on Saturdays to try to catch up on missed collections.

 

SWP advice

Key advice points from SWP include:

• If collections are missed, efforts will be made to return to pick up any refuse or recycling as soon as possible.

• If a weekly collection is missed, householders should put it out for collection for the next two days (excluding Sundays). If a fortnightly collection is missed, it should be put out for the next five days (excluding Sundays). In both cases, if not collected within the advised time, put it out for the next usual collection day, providing it is safe.

• Additional waste and recycling materials will be accepted on delayed collections. Extra refuse should be placed in black sacks and extra recycling in carrier bags put out with boxes.

• No catch-up services will be provided for garden waste or clinical waste collections missed because of severe weather, and these collections may be temporarily suspended to focus resources on restoring waste and recycling collections.

• Recycling centres can take recycling and waste if collections are missed but it is best to check to ensure the centre is open before travelling.

• Residents are urged to check that neighbours, especially the elderly or vulnerable, know what arrangements are in place.

• During severe weather, daily updates on the situation are posted on the SWP website at www.somersetwaste.gov.uk.

• Follow us on our @SomersetWaste Twitter feed at http://twitter.com/somersetwaste, or Facebook  at http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/Somerset-Waste-Partnership/128826580486763

 

Holiday collection changes

The changes for collections affected by the Christmas and New Year holidays have already been listed on the SWP web site. In summary:

• Usual collections and catch-ups continue up to and including Friday 24 December.
• With one exception, all collections from 27 December to 7 January occur one day later.
• Exception is Friday 31 December, whose collections will take place on Sunday 2 January.
• Normal collections resume on Monday 10 January.

 Bins and boxes

SWP is advising householders to keep bins and boxes in a sheltered spot, where possible, such as in a shed, garage or the lee of the house, will protect them and their contents from freezing.

If a bin or box does freeze, please do not try to release the contents with boiling water (this will freeze, too), by hitting it (frozen plastic shatters more easily), jumping up and down on the bin contents (this risks serious injury), or forcing the lid open (allow lids to de-frost naturally).

Do not worry if the contents of the recycling box, such as paper, get wet. However, please keep dry any clothing and shoes (tied in pairs) by double bagging them.

Homes with coal fires must allow ashes to cool thoroughly before putting in the plastic wheelie bin. Ashes from wood fires can be used in home composting, but do not home compost coal ash.

 Keeping informed

 

During severe weather, daily updates on the situation are posted on the SWP website at www.somersetwaste.gov.uk.

Follow SWP on the @SomersetWaste Twitter feed at http://twitter.com/somersetwaste, or Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/Somerset-Waste-Partnership/128826580486763

All Somerset media are informed of the latest situation.

Residents can always call or email their district council customer services.

Williton Christmas Festival

Don't forget the Williton Christmas Festival taking place on 8th December. Parade through village 6.30pm from Danesfield. Please visit the Council chamber where there will be many stalls.

Winter Service update 2pm 7/12/2010 from Somerset Highways

The forecast for today is variable cloud cover this afternoon and also the chance of some mist or freezing fog patches persisting in places. Road Surface Temperatures are currently below zero in places. Later in the afternoon, during the evening and overnight Road Surface Temperatures will remain below zero with the chance of some icy stretches where roads are damp. Freezing fog patches will appear in places.. It will be mainly fine  tomorrow morning.

As we salted the pre-treated network last night and again this morning we are confident there is high residual salt and will therefore only treat the secondary network (F2's) this afternoon. The scouts will be out on the pre-treated network at 4.00 with crews ready to go at 4.45 tomorrow morning.
There have been enquiries about salt bins and replenishment. As you are probably aware it is the local communities who purchase salt bins and site them on the highway with our approval. At the time they are sited the local community are told we will fill them at the start of the season as we  record all locations on our Geographic Information System, (GIS). Once the local community start to use the salt we have no way of knowing how much remains and they are asked to let us know when stocks are getting low, not when they are empty, and we will try to replenish when we have resource available which during bad weather is not immediately as our efforts are concentrated on the pre-treated network.

This has worked well previously but with the bad weather over the last few years usage from the bins has increased and they are being emptied quickly, often faster than we can fill them. Replenishment requests should be directed to Somerset Direct (0845 345 9155) who can then pass locations on to the area offices for action when resource becomes available.
Sonia Davidson-Grant, Environment Director, has asked me to include a personal message from her in this update.
"I would like to personally thank you for your hard work and support in keeping Somerset moving and assisting our communities in these extreme weather conditions. Working together, we are making an important difference to many people's daily experience and protecting our local economy. "