Senior Ceredigion councillors are being asked to avoid any of its household waste sites being “mothballed” after a source of UK government grant funding has been found.

Ceredigion councillors are to debate proposals next week which could lead to the mothballing of the Rhydeinon household waste site in the middle of the county.

At the 24 September meeting of Ceredigion County Council’s Thriving Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee, members received an update of the review of the household waste sites in Ceredigion.

Earlier this year, the council held a public consultation following last year’s decision to potentially close one of its four Household Waste Sites and review the opening hours at the other sites in order to make a £100,000 saving previously identified in a long list of council budget savings.

Ceredigion has four waste sites: Kilmaenllwyd near Cardigan, Glanyrafon Industrial Estate near Aberystwyth, Lampeter, and Rhydeinon near Llanarth.

The consultation said Glanyrafon is the only site in the north, with the preference to keep it open, with Kilmaenllwyd providing a southern facility; Rhydeinon and Lampeter having the greatest overlap.

Council documents have said that mothballing the Rhydeinon site and maintaining opening hours at the other sites “would have the least impact on residents”.

Following that consultation, 1,250 responses were received, “highlighting strong opposition to the proposal, concerns about travel distance, fuel costs, fly tipping, and the impact on the Welsh language and on communities,” a report for members ahead of the September meeting said, adding: “Respondents suggested alternatives such as reducing opening hours across all sites.”

It says current household waste site contracts are due to expire in early 2026, and procurement of new contracts will be commencing shortly.

“Should a decision be made to suspend use of the Rhydeinon HWS, or an alternative site, the appropriate contract would not be awarded. There is an opportunity to seek bids, during the procurement process, for operation of HWS with reduced opening hours as suggested in the consultation responses.”

There were three options before the committee, which take the form of a recommendation to Cabinet, including reversing the decision, deferment, and a reversal of the decision.

At the September meeting, committee members heard the council was due to receive a waste service improvement grant from UK Government, which could address the £100,000 shortfall in the next year or two, but there was no certainty about the value to be received, as yet, “greater clarity” expected by November.

Members heard an impassioned plea for the waste site to remain open, in a letter from pupils at Llanarth school, with Aberaeron councillor Cllr Elizabeth Evans later saying: “We really need Cabinet members to stop certain items coming forward, I really hope we don’t see Rhydeinon coming before this committee again. I’m really glad there’s a way forward as a grant, or whatever, to save this site.”

An amended recommendation, to reverse the previous council decision to realise a revenue saving of £100,000, funding Rhydeinon through the grant, was backed by members; a final decision now being made at a future cabinet meeting.