Almost £1 million in savings could be generated through charging for garden waste collections.

Based on an assumption that 40 per cent of households sign up to Flintshire Council’s revised tariffed collection scheme, up to £958,000 could be made by the authority.

In a report to councillors outlining how the new programme will work, the council said that “given the current period of austerity and the ongoing financial pressures” it was “necessary” for charges to be introduced.

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It is thought that if 27,600 households sign up to the scheme, which is not a statutory duty, £828,000 could be brought in through implementing an annual charge of £30 per brown bin of garden waste.

A further £130,000 would be generated through operational savings.

Charges for second and third bins will be £30 per bin per year with the service operating from March 1 to November 30 on a fortnightly basis from the kerbside.

The current system of issuing coloured bar code stickers signifying residents using the service will be continued, with the option of online payment also introduced.

Existing payment options by phone and in a Flintshire Connects centre will remain for those who do not have computer access.

Notification of the charge will be sent with council tax information in March – throughout which the service will be provided for free – and residents will have until April 1 to register.

In the report by Steve Jones, chief officer for Streetscene and environment, ahead of Monday's environment overview and scrutiny committee meeting, said the decision to introduce a charge for this service “is a difficult one” but added that garden waste can still be taken to HRC sites for free.

He added the discretionary service collections “contribute significantly to the overall recycling performance through both the brown bin collection service and the garden waste collected at our household recycling centres (HRC)”.

The service is provided from March 1 to November 30 to meet highest demand with waste taken to the council’s composting facility in Greenfield to be turned into soil conditioner that is made free to residents at HRC sites.

Garden waste collections were introduced in 2003, primarily to urban properties with gardens, around 80 per cent of all properties in the county.

The managed weekly collection service in 2011 led to the introduction of the service to all properties.

In April 2015, the council cabinet approved the introduction of a charge for a second or third brown bin used by residents.

Since then, about 2,200 residents have subscribed to that service generating a revenue of about £50,000.