council slowly closing down allotments on H&S grounds.

[green thing]

My local council are in the process of reviewing their property portfolio and
slowly refusing to let out allotment plots as they become available on one sites
On health and safety grounds due to contamination from asbestos
on some sites.
The council has had no policy regarding the safe disposal of asbestos
And no means of disposal at the household recycling centers

One 20 plot site now has four plot holders left on it
The council have neglected the site for years and it looking like it will be disposed of.

The council rarely get involved with allotment sites and if someone is paying for a plot and not using it they are happy .end result is lot of unused plots which makes the sites look neglected
And the council then say that there is a little intrest in the plots .

Looks like they are not managing the plots in order to run them down and dispose of them
They are now taking photo and recording the neglected state of the plots.

A large construction company has been building new homes around one site
And are now coming to the end of the building work ?

[Alison]

Re the asbestos disposal, there is a very good reason that you can't take it to the household waste disposal places, it's really quite nasty stuff and therefore is hazardous waste. It would be totally unreasonable for the guys that work there to have to deal with the stuff which is why it has to have it's own disposal route (which by the way is rather expensive as it's nasty stuff).

[binley100]

We can take ours to the tip as long as certain rules are followed .......It must be double bagged and you need to phone and book a time for them to open the asbestos skip which is kept locked .....

[Scarlet]

Yes, I've got an old house. Asbestos was found in several places. We were advised to spray with water, handle with gloves and a mask, double bag and tape up. The dust is a problem.
It was expensive to dispose of and we had to book it in and have it weighed.

[Littlefox2000]

Can I ask...is the problem the asbestos? Or that the council are trying underhand methods to reduce plot use so they can justify handing sites over to building projects?

I thought it was the latter from your post. If so, is there a way to create some kind of interested parties group. On the allotment finder forum and in other documentation in the web, I thought the law suggested that if enough people club together the council have to at least listen.

I'm very lucky as the council that runs my site really of seem to care about the sites and keeping them full of active plot holders. ( I think the head of our council department is someone very experienced with holding an allotment.) But councils that don't...maybe they need to be shown the error of their ways, esp, if you have waiting lists with them


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[veggiechicken]

It might help if Green Thing told us which council is doing this. There may be other Grapes on here in that area who could tell us what they know.

[alldigging]

What do your local councillors say?
Is there a long waiting list in the area?

One of the biggest problems is waiting lists being a bit short.

Which local authority?

Has an asbestos survey been done? If not then why not.

[green thing]

Most council have at least one asbestos skip in the borough
Our council refuses to take it


On my previous site the council refused to deal with it
We kept asking for an asbestos skip they wouldn't acknowledge any Emails or letters from the committee
Regarding the problems
I think it's still there piled up in a corner
A committee member offered to take it to a neighboring councils waste site but was told he didn't have a waste transport licence .
Also the council said household waste sites are for household waste only not allotment waste

This site is also being run down due to lack of management.

Seem strange that they have found a small amounts on another site and are gradually closingdown the site down

The council has also been disposing of problem land sites in the area for nominal fees.

We have plenty of interested people who want allotments in the area
But with 10+ year waiting list most people give up waiting.

No time scale on the allotment act the council use this to the full advantage
We also have no statutary allotments in the area we are all on 30 days
Notice in our tenancy agreement
No requirement to find another suitable site.

Is anyone a member of the NSALG and used there
Legal services .

[rustylady]

This site is also being run down due to lack of management.



We have plenty of interested people who want allotments in the area
But with 10+ year waiting list most people give up waiting.

One 20 plot site now has four plot holders left on it

I don't understand Greenthing.

You say the site is being run down due to lack of management - management by whom?

Also, if there is a long waiting list why is there a 20 plot site with only 4 plots let?

[MartinRSharpe]

Which council area are you in?

Manchester, Rossendale, Tameside and Trafford all accept it in the North West. Although you may have jump though some rules regarding double bagging, special bags etc.

If it has been dumped on public land then usually the council usually has a requirement to remove it... if it is reported.

Its hard to suggest what to do without specifics

[alldigging]

If the council is still letting ANYONE on site then it's the safer sort of asbestos. They wouldn't be letting anyone on otherwise else their own liability insurance wouldn't cover them.

Ask for an asbestos survey to be done.
The landlord has responsibility for the site.

Separately- ask for a quote from a couple of companies on how much it is to do a survey of the site.