Council welcomes DAERA Minister Edwin Poots to recycling centre

Mid and East Antrim Borough Council was delighted to welcome the Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs Minister, Edwin Poots MLA, to our Ballymena recycling centre this morning, Friday.

Minister Poots, who visited the Waveney Road facility, was keen to see how the service was being operated safely and in accordance with public health guidelines on social distancing.

The Minister saw first-hand the operation of the site and commended the Council for its work on reopening household recycling centres so successfully.

Mayor of Mid and East Antrim, Cllr Maureen Morrow, and Alderman Billy Ashe MBE, greeted Minister Poots on his arrival to the facility.

The Minister was also welcomed by MP for North Antrim, Ian Paisley.

Recycling centres in Mid and East Antrim were reopened to the public a month ago after the Council’s Group Party Leaders decided facilities for waste represented an essential service.

Our citizens continue to lead the way in following the rules around using the facilities during the ongoing Coronavirus emergency by ensuring only cars and trailers enter the sites, and that users remove their recycling themselves.

The Mayor said: “It was a privilege to welcome Minister Poots to our Waveney Road facility today and to show him how successful the reopening of our recycling sites has been to date.

“Our staff have gone above and beyond to help our waste services run smoothly during the last month, as the amount of household waste has increased with so many people staying at home.

“I must also praise the efforts of all our residents throughout the borough for following the rules around social distancing in order to keep themselves and our staff safe and for maintaining their commitment to recycling waste.

“The Minister was impressed with how successful the reopening of our Household Recycling Centres (HRC’s) have been and it was a great opportunity for him to see the positive results.”

Alderman Billy Ashe MBE added: “I thank Minister Poots for taking the time to visit our recycling centre in Ballymena today.

“Council’s decision to reopen our HRC’s to the public last month was carefully considered and taken on the grounds that it was reasonable, appropriate and would reduce community frustration, as well as provide a much-needed and essential service for our residents.

“An increase in fly-tipping across the borough was also a key factor in deciding to open the facilities again, and it is great to see how co-operative the public have been in following the guidelines in order to protect public health.”