HOW often do we hear complaints or see reports of fly tipping in the Malvern Hills District? How often do we see evidence of waste disposal in our country lanes, lay-bys or field entrances?

As with many other problems, such as the vandalism in Priory Park, MHDC fail to recognise the cause of the problem and complain when remedial action is required to rectify the situation.

The Newland Waste Disposal site has now been closed for several months, with little consideration given to the problems the closure would cause, skips have not been available in the parishes because of the apparent Health and Safety restrictions. No alternative has been given for the disposal of household waste, which cannot be collected by the weekly refuse collection except for the announcement that "the Council will arrange collection of bulky items". Has anyone attempted to have a bulky item collected?

On Thursday, April 24, I contacted MHDC to arrange for the collection of an old mattress. Monday was the reply. This is a good service I thought, but the reply of Monday was soon qualified to by May 12!

On questioning the two and a half weeks that it would take to have this unwanted item removed and that Newland was closed it was suggested that I could take the mattress to Upton.

Had I attempted to take the mattress to Upton on top of my small car I could well have contributed to the local fly tipping, or at the worst scenario caused a road traffic accident when the mattress flew off my car roof.

I cannot get the mattress collected by MHDC in a reasonable time, so perhaps I could burn it. On second thoughts this would probably result in a visit from their Environmental Health Department!

MRS A PORTER, Bransford.