A new £7.7 million household waste recycling centre to serve east Lancashire has received approval, with Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council backing the project. The facility will be built on Goose House Lane in Darwen and will replace two aging sites: Blackburn’s George Street tip and Spring Vale Road in Darwen.
The proposal first emerged in 2022 but was put on hold due to the cost-of-living crisis. Initially estimated at around £5 million, council leader Phil Riley described the project as “long overdue” and expressed strong enthusiasm for it. “The current George Street West facility is an embarrassment,” he commented, adding, “I am really excited about this.”
Councillor Mustafa Desai, leader of the opposition 4BwD group, echoed the support.
Environment chief Councillor Jim Smith, who championed the move, explained that the George Street West site could no longer handle demand efficiently, noting queues of up to 45 minutes as residents waited to use it. While Spring Vale Road in Darwen was not as severely stretched, it still failed to meet the standards customers expect.
The planned centre will feature separate entry points for cars and lorries, a design aimed at boosting convenience and, in turn, recycling rates across the borough. Local Democracy Reporting Service colleagues expect the site to push recycling towards a 70% target, with potential to reach as high as 78%.
Financial forecasts in the business case suggest the project could deliver annual savings and additional income of about £600,000.
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