Frequently asked questions

FAQs

Frequently asked questions

Why does the community recycling centre need to be expanded?

When community recycling centres such as Witley were first established, very few materials were separated for recycling. Since then Surrey County Council has committed to achieving a 70 per cent recycling rate across the county. That means many different types of containers are required for all the materials that need to be separated and that takes up more space.

The footprint of the existing site is very small compared to most other community recycling centres in Surrey. The site handles approximately 6,000 tonnes of waste and recycling materials each year and there is insufficient space to store enough containers on site to cope with the peak daily throughput of recyclable materials and residual waste deposited at the site. Containers have to be exchanged as soon as they become full and it is not possible to delay this until after the site is closed to the public.

Container exchanges involve closing the site to the public as there is not enough space to segregate the public from waste vehicles safely. This is inconvenient to the public and often causes site traffic to queue back onto the Petworth Road.

The proposed extended community recycling centre will provide enough space on site to enable the public and waste vehicles to be safely segregated during container exchanges to enable the community recycling centre to stay open to the public during these activities. More containers will be stored on site allowing a wider range of materials to be recycled. In addition the proposed redevelopment will minimise the risk of vehicles queuing outside the site.

What additional traffic control measures will be in place along Rake Lane during the road improvements?

Public vehicles using the redeveloped community recycling centre will use a new entrance on Rake Lane to enter the site and will exit using the existing access road at Petworth Road. The proposed new community recycling centre entrance is 115m to the east of the Rodborough Technology College entrance. To improve road safety along Rake Lane, SITA Surrey will:

  • Install a new footpath from the new site access road to Rodborough Technology College to assist students using Rake Lane from the east.
  • Install a new footpath and speed cushion west of the College to the Petworth Road to assist students walking to the Witley area.
  • Upgrade the existing speed cushion close to Rodborough Technology College to include a zebra crossing.
  • Extend the 20mph zone east of the proposed new community recycling centre access with appropriate signage and gateway.
  • Improve lighting along the widened road.
  • Heavy goods vehicles servicing the redeveloped community recycling centre will continue to use the existing Petworth Road access and will not affect the Rake Lane ‘safe routes to school’ scheme.

How will the risk of noise nuisance from waste activities on site be minimised?

An extensive noise assessment was undertaken by SITA Surrey as part of the planning application. The redeveloped community recycling centre will include the following noise control measures:

  • The ramp, and high level public area, will act as an acoustic barrier for activities at ground level (e.g. HGV movements and container exchanges).
  • Containers used for potentially noisy materials such as glass will where practical, be placed away from sensitive site boundaries.
  • Use of the wooden acoustic screens around the perimeter of the site.

Additionally, the planning conditions limit heavy goods vehicle movements at weekends and on Bank Holidays to after 10am.

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