Plans for a recycling centre in Aberdeen have been given the green light.

Aberdeen City Council's Housing and Environment Committee agreed at its meeting on 13 April that the north-west corner of the Grove Nursery site at Hazlehead was the most suitable site for a new recycling centre in the west of the city.

At present, residents in the city centre or the west of Aberdeen have to travel to Altens, Bucksburn, Bridge of Don or into Aberdeenshire if they want to use a household waste recycling centre.

Creating a new household waste recycling centre in the west of the city will not only make recycling many items, including car batteries and tyres, electrical items, gas canisters, household chemicals, and rubble and earth much easier for many Aberdeen residents and considerably boost the city's recycling rates.

The creation of the Grove Nursery recycling centre will see a reduction in the amount of waste being sent to landfill and a 30% increase in recycling rates compared to the current average performance at the other city sites.

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The recycling centre will be approximately 1 acre in size and occupy only a small part of the Grove Nursery site (16.3 acres in total). It is already well screened by trees and bushes, but further planting will be carried out to screen the recycling centre.

Planning permission for the site has not yet been sought and the council is meantime undertaking non-statutory consultation with members of the public about the plans for the site, to ensure that concerns about the use of the site are addressed. This has included the creation of a liaison group, made up of local community groups, schools and council representatives.

Prior to the Housing and Environment Committee being asked to identify a preferred site for the nursery, the council consulted a large number of local groups and organisations to get their views on the plans.

In order to get planning permission and a SEPA (Scottish Environment Protection Agency) licence, the planning application will undergo detailed scrutiny, which will include:

* traffic impact assessment;

* road safety audit;

* junction assessments;

* noise assessment;

* ground and surface water protection (SUDS);

* impact on air quality and environment.

Any planning application must also meet the approval of the Development Management Sub-Committee and will be subject to the usual public consultation process, during which anyone with an interest may object to or support the proposal.

The recycling centre will not be sited within Hazlehead Park itself. It will be built on the disused site of the former plant nursery. None of the park or recreational facilities in the area will be lost in the creation of the recycling centre.

The corner of the area chosen for the recycling centre is the furthest point on the site from housing, with a distance of around 150m from the closest property and the site is well screened on three sides by mature trees.

(GK)