USERS of the county’s recycling centres are being reminded to think about the waste which they are taking to the sites so as not to waste council and police time.

The reminder issued by the county council follows the discovery of a human skull in the general waste skip at Sutton Barton Recycling Centre near Honiton on September 17. The centre was closed for a few hours as police had to be called to the site to examine the skull. On closer inspection it was found that the skull had been used for educational purposes.

In June, marine flares were taken to the recycling centre at Punchbowl in Crediton by a member of the public. In the same month, a tank mortar shell was found in a bucket of metal items at Bideford recycling centre. Both sites had to be evacuated and closed for a number of hours while bomb disposal experts removed the items.