Grime Busters Planned for Ealing Streets

As part of new proposals to make the borough cleaner

The streets of Ealing Borough could get its very own army of grime busters to blast off dirt as part of major new proposals to make the borough cleaner.

The £146,000 cash injection to provide a new team of street washers was announced by Ealing Council as part of their spending plans for 2008/09.

Complete with high-pressure jet washers, the team will visit streets across the area blasting away dirt, muck and chewing gum from grubby roads and paths to make the borough spick-and-span.

There’s good news too for anyone buying a new fridge or freezer, with plans to scrap the £15 charge for the Council picking up and disposing of the old one. It’s hoped the scheme will reduce fly-tipping in the borough – last year alone more than 1,200 old appliances were dumped in Ealing, causing an eyesore and costing a whopping £78,000 for the Council to clear up.

They’ll also be £55,000 for new rubbish bins in parks, streets and open spaces to discourage people from littering.

Councillor Will Brooks, Cabinet Member for Environment and Street Services, said, “This is a significant investment designed to make the borough’s streets even cleaner, on top of the considerable amount of cash we spent last year to improve the environment. We want people to have a real sense of pride in their neighbourhood and we hope that by making the streets really clean and ensuring it’s easy for people to get rid of rubbish, people will work together to keep their streets tidy.”

The budget proposals are due to be considered by Council on Tuesday, 4 March. If agreed the charge for collecting fridges and freezers could be scrapped as early as the beginning of June 2008.

The exact date will be confirmed after the Council’s budget meeting.

January 22, 2008