Three Moray recycling centres will reduce their hours next month after a council decision to save money.
Elgin’s Chanonry recycling centre, Buckie’s Gollachy site and Keith’s recycling centre will close on Mondays from October 8.
The centres will remain open from Tuesday to Saturday from 9am until 4pm and Sundays from 10am until 3pm.
The change comes from Moray Council’s 2024/25 budget saving measures where £19.2m of savings were needed to balance the budget.
Council say respondents to survey ‘supportive’ of cuts
Moray Council said residents were asked for their views on reducing recycling centre opening hours as part of a wider budget consultation in 2023.
Respondents were asked if they would support a reduction in hours, with 77% indicating some support and 23% being fully supportive.
The cuts to the service come as Moray Council meets in the coming weeks to discuss the budget for 2025/26 and beyond which requires over £10m of savings.
Councillor Marc Macrae said: “We appreciate there may be a level of inconvenience for some recycling centre users but the change to opening hours has been necessary for balancing the budget.
“Our consultation last year showed 42% of respondents said there would only be limited impact on them and 8% said it would be severe.
“I hope this shows we’re paying attention to what is acceptable by locals for the future of our services.”
Earlier this month, the P&J reported that the council was being urged to revive scrapped plans to replace Chanonry recycling centre in Elgin.
A scheme to replace Elgin’s Chanonry facility was shelved a year ago following two failed applications to the Scottish Government’s recycling fund.
Criticisms of the current site include that it is too cramped – with people having to book slots online due to its busy traffic.
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