Councillors in Tenby have written to Pembrokeshire council’s Head of Environmental Services requesting that the authority write to letting agencies around the seaside town to remind them of their legal obligations on waste disposal.

Speaking at a recent meeting of the Town Council, Clr. Laurence Blackhall told his fellow councillors, that he and others, had noticed more and more people emptying their domestic rubbish into bins around town before returning to their holiday let property.

Clr. Blackhall said that having had a conversation with a person staying at a holiday let, it was explained that the property had no dust bins provided and there was a sign asking holiday makers to put their rubbish in the council’s street litter bins.

“The owners of these letting properties are not paying council tax as they are businesses,” remarked Clr. Blackhall.

“They claim full business rates relief then do not properly arrange for the clearing away of their rubbish.

“Five tonnes of waste is being taken away from the street litter bins per day in Tenby and part of the problem is that not all holiday lets are getting trade waste agreements in place.

“Some are abusing the system. This is not fair on the people of Tenby and it needs stamping out,” he continued.

He proposed writing to all letting agencies asking how they advise, and what more they can do to advise, visitors on the correct procedures.

Clr. Trevor Hallett said many properties are cleaned by a team of cleaners who were not necessarily taking away the rubbish. He said that he was aware of a number of letting properties that do not supply any caddies or bags.

Clr. Mrs. Christine Brown related to a holiday property nearby which had not supplied any waste receptacles and visitors staying there even came to her asking where to dispose of their rubbish.

“The owners did come down and claimed that the cleaners had taken the bags! If they are paying business rates then why can PCC not connect with their trade waste department and insist that they must put their rubbish out in the proper bags and have trade waste agreements, she asked?” she stated.

“Clr. Blackhall is right, letting agencies need to make visitors properly aware of how to dispose of their rubbish and, as businesses, need proper trade waste agreements,” she stressed.

Clr. Mrs. Brown felt PCC were better resourced to deal with this and suggested that the town council write to the Head of Environmental Services to ask them how to solve the problem.

Clr. Blackhall agreed, feeling the PCC trade waste department could access information as to which properties were not paying Council Tax and then ask them for their Trade Waste Agreement.

Clr. Jim Cornwell told the meeting that there were seven B&Bs on his street, and all have trade waste agreements, but had witnessed visitors putting their waste bags into seafront public bins. He agreed with the proposal to write to PCC as this situation had been going on for such a long time.

The town clerk said that, while holiday letting properties are certainly causing a problem, there are also local residents who are also adding to the issue by using the street litter bins for their domestic rubbish. However, if the issue relating to holiday let properties could be resolved, then these local residents may be more easily identified, he added.

Clr. Mrs. Brown added that a prominent business man in the town had been seen depositing his own waste in a public bin, actually taking out the bag that was in the bin and leaving it by the side to put his own waste bag in its place.

Clr. Hallett suggested that if this was witnessed again, details should be forwarded to PCC, possibly with a photograph.

It was resolved that the town clerk write to Mr. Richard Brown, Head of Environmental Services requesting that PCC write to letting agencies reminding them of their legal obligations to enter into a waste management agreement with a registered waste transfer operative for the disposal of waste from a business property.