POTENTIAL health hazards are concerning Caerphilly County Borough residents after their food waste bins have gone uncollected for weeks - with the county council blaming a high level of grass collections for the backlog.

Social media posts from the council on June 28 warned that some of the collections were behind schedule due to a high increase in garden waste being collected, but the posts added they would pick up what they missed the following day.

But some residents have been waiting for up to a month without their food waste taken.

The main areas affected are Risca, Pontywaun and Newbridge.

In some streets in Newbridge there have been slightly delayed collections - with the bins picked up the next morning. While other streets in the same area have ended up with maggots in their food waste bins after they were left for more than a week.

Stacey Morgan of Alexandra Place, Newbridge said: "They should have collected them last Wednesday, July 3. I had left them out since Tuesday night and they collected it on July 8 after I complained."

Residents say their concerns are based on potential health and safety risks now the weather is warming up and the collections are becoming less frequent than the standard weekly service.

Alun Morgan said: “My food waste hasn't been emptied for at least a fortnight; I think it's an environmental health issue now with the hot weather.”

South Wales Argus:

Emma Ross provided a picture (above) of the waste not picked up by the council. She later disposed of the waste herself at the tip, to not cause a danger to people passing by.

Ms Ross said: "I cleaned up the empty bags the next day (after the picture was taken). The footpath outside my house is used regular by elderly in the street and school children cutting through to go up to the comp. I didn't want to be responsible for a trip outside my house. The bags were there five days before I took them to the tip.

"I have a further two bags there now from cutting hedges out the front, awaiting to see if they're collected and bin men tidy up after themselves Friday!"

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Some residents in Risca have been waiting for more than three weeks for their food bins to be collected, with one resident, Byron Davies, claiming he left his bins out for three weeks but has seen no collection and that his neighbour has been waiting for five weeks.

He expressed his concerns in an email to Nigel George, a local councillor and Cabinet member for Neighbourhood Services and in a reply seen by the South Wales Argus, was told that the parking on the street meant the truck couldn’t get up the street.

Frustrated with the response, Mr Davies said: “The normal bin lorry comes up the street every fortnight, how big is that? If they can’t get up the street, they walk.”

Sally Blanche had to wait five weeks for her food waste to be collected. She said they only came out after she threatened to contact the South Wales Argus.

She said: "It took five weeks to collect my food waste and then I had to tell them I was contacting the Argus.

"They came and collected it but after the phone calls, the final straw was to go to the Argus.

"I had maggots in the bin, blue bottle flies and it smelled in the hot weather. I was very upset and was crying on the phone as I had my grandchildren coming here and I couldn't open the windows."

A spokesman for the council said, “We are currently experiencing high volumes of green and garden waste at this time of year, so some collection rounds are being impacted by the backlog. We are working hard to catch up and would like to apologise for any inconvenience.”