Furious residents of Portsoy will hold a demonstration this week in a final push to save their recycling centre.
Aberdeenshire Council revealed proposals to close Hatton, Insch, Portsoy and Whitehills recycling facilities last summer.
The authority visualises balancing out the closures with more efficient kerbside collections.
But residents of Portsoy immediately opposed the idea, and organised a meeting to put forward ideas on how to maximise the site.
Representatives then spoke at the Banff and Buchan area committee, where councillors agreed they preferred the three weekly pick-up option and recommended that the proposal to close the Portsoy recycling centre was removed.
But when the papers for infrastructure services committee – which will have the final say on the plans – came out, the recommendation was not included.
>> Keep up to date with the latest news with The P&J newsletter
Rod Lovie, a member of the local community council said: “We are concerned that closure of the Portsoy recycling centre appears to still be on the table.
“In our opinion the section of the consultation dealing with the recycling centres is biased towards closure.
“We are disappointed that the decision by the Banff and Buchan area committee to oppose the closure of the Portsoy Recycling Centre appears to have made no difference and was not mentioned in the consultation report.
“However, we have been given assurances by Aberdeenshire Council that feedback will be included in the report.
“A public demonstration is planned and our petition will be handed in to the council before the meeting.
“We intend to show the councillors from all parts of Aberdeenshire, from Boddam to Banchory, that Portsoy deserves to retain its recycling centre.”
Chairwoman Caroline Hobbs said the demonstration is to prove how strongly people feel about the proposal.
She said: “We were furious that our report wasn’t originally included, especially as Bennachie’s concerns about the threatened closure of the Insch site were included.
“Rod Lovie complained and our report is now included.
“We have decided to hold a demonstration type gathering of people in the community at the Portsoy skip site to show how strongly everyone feels.”
Passionate Portsoy locals prepare to fight the proposed closure of recycling centre
Philip McKay, head of roads, landscape and waste services for Aberdeenshire Council, said: “It is heartening to see so much enthusiasm for recycling in any part of Aberdeenshire and we are considering all representations made ahead of a decision on the area’s future waste strategy.”
The demonstration is going to take place on Saturday at 2pm at the Portsoy recycling centre. The infrastructure services committee will discuss the proposals on January 24.
