The Dorking Tip, which has been under threat of closure by the County Council, could be saved.

This follows the recent publication of a report which will be considered by the County Council’s Cabinet and which recommends that all four of the Surrey Tips which are currently under the threat of closure should be kept open. The report also recommends that charges for small quantities of wood and rubble should be discontinued.

We are delighted that the importance of the Dorking Tip is now recognised by the County Council and that it is being recommended that it is retained. The petition the Liberal Democrats delivered to County Hall at the beginning of the year opposing its closure along with the objections of many local residents have clearly had an influence on the County Council.

The Dorking Tip, which is currently only open for 3 days per week, needs to be open for 7 days per week and to accept a wide range of waste so that residents can dispose of their waste in one trip, locally.

Furthermore, since the Dorking Tip was restricted to taking only recyclable material, residents with a mixed bag of materials have been frustrated by the Tip only taking some of their items and then having to travel to the Leatherhead Tip to dispose of the rest.This is unreasonable: residents from Dorking and southern Mole Valley should not have to drive miles to the Leatherhead Tip to dispose of their waste.

In short, having a local Tip is an essential service and the County Council should be making it easy for residents to dispose of their waste responsibly, not more difficult.

We hope that the County Council’s Cabinet Cabinet will decide to retain the Dorking Tip when this report is considered at the October Cabinet Meeting, will decide to open it for 7 days per week for a wide range of waste, not just recyclables, and will abolish the charges for disposing of household DIY waste.

The Dorking Tip, which has been under threat of closure by the County Council, could be saved.