DEVON County Council this week urged residents not to forego using their recycling centres and reminded them that normal household waste can still be taken there free of charge.

The reminder comes after criticism from the public about new charges brought in on April 1 for such waste as tyres, plasterboard, asbestos, blocks, stones, tiles and soil/rubble.

It comes at a time when, due to Government cut-backs, Devon County Council is looking to save £54-million this year and £30-million the following financial year; — however, critics of the charges say that it will just lead to an increase in fly-tipping.

In a letter to the Times one reader described the charges as 'a subsidised fly-tipping tax' and claimed that they would cost the authorities more in having to clear up the illegal tipping.

A spokesman for the council said: 'Fly-tippers can be fined up to £50,000 in magistrates' courts, face unlimited fines in higher courts, as well as community punishment orders or prison sentences of up to five years.'

The new charges at Devon's recycling centres are £2 per bag of rubble which could contain brick, stone, gravel or soil and ceramic sanitary ware, £2 per tyre, £7 per bag, or full sheet of plasterboard and £20 per bag, or full sheet of asbestos.

Items such as garden waste, furniture and old electrical appliances etc are still accepted free of charge.

The spokesman said: 'We would encourage everyone who is carrying out any household DIY to consider the amount of waste they need to dispose of and the best and most responsible way of doing so.

'In some cases, it could be more cost effective to hire a private skip.

'We would also remind people that staff working at our recycling centres are just doing their job, and ask that the public treat them as they would wish to be treated themselves.'

The council is legally obliged to provide recycling centres for household waste to be accepted free of charge but it does not have to accept non-household waste such as soil, rubble, plasterboard, asbestos or tyres.