HUNDREDS of Blaenau Gwent residents have protested today in Ebbw Vale over a controversial new recycling trolley scheme.

The so-called "Troliblocs" three recycling boxes stacked on a trolley were given out in October and have proved unpopular.

Protest organiser Mandy Shale said the council was "treating this group with disdain"  adding "no-one here at the council willing to meet with us face to face".

She said: "There are some 70,000 residents in Blaenau Gwent and this council is failing every one of them."

Another protester Lynette Bevans, said: "We just want to know who made the decisions to change the recycling procedure in Blaenau Gwent. We certainly weren't consulted".

Terry Bevans also was at the council offices to protest: "We have three boxes and if one thing is misplaced, nothing gets collected.  Who does that help? This council is taking more than it is giving back to its residents."

A spokeswoman for Blaenau Gwent Council said that the system that the authority was previously operating where waste was not separated was no longer meeting the recycling requirements set out by Welsh Government, saying this system required the authority to pay a company for its recycling to be sorted. 

She added the new system, where waste will be sorted at the kerbside means the authority will generate an income from the recycling that will be sold at market value.  

She said the new service is now in its fourth week, and as with any service change of this level, it is assessed and reviewed to ensure that any issues are addressed.