A radical overhaul of the borough's tips has been rubber-stamped, despite fears over cost and increased fly-tipping.

Cheshire West and Chester's ruling cabinet recently voted in favour of changes to services at its Household Waste Recycling Centres.

From April next year, they will be managed by the council's own company – Cheshire West Recycling (CWR).

Under the newly approved plan, each household will only be allowed to visit a tip 30 times in any 12-month period.

A visit in a commercial vehicle or a vehicle towing a large trailer will count as two visits.

Residents will be asked to register their vehicle and home address so the number of visits can be monitored. Additional visits can be applied for in 'exceptional circumstances'.

They will still be able to bring DIY waste to tips without charge, but only a limited amount, this would be up to eight bags or four bulky fitted items.

The council said the changes are needed in order to modernise its services (Image via: Cheshire West and Chester Council)

Additional DIY waste can be taken to the tips for £3.70 per bag or item.

Speaking at the cabinet meeting, Conservative Cllr Simon Eardley, shadow cabinet member for environment, raised fears it could lead to more illegal dumping.

He told the meeting: "The truth is that fly-tipping is out of control at the moment in the borough.

"Reported incidents are up. I see it in my ward every week. And of course I condemn those that commit these crimes, but we need to do much more.

"I have real concerns that proposed changes before the cabinet will make the situation so much worse still."

The council said the changes are needed in order to modernise its services, with the charges for DIY waste intended to prevent their overuse by commercial operators.

Labour's Cllr Stuart Bingham, (community safety), told members: "The idea that we're complacent about fly-tipping is just simply not true.

"A lot of work is done on fly-tipping.

"We collect a lot of data about fly-tipping. The evidence doesn't suggest that there will be an epidemic of flight once we introduce these charges.

"I just do not believe that will happen."

Conservative Cllr Lynn Gibbon (shadow regeneration), added it felt like residents were being 'punished for doing the right thing'.

She said: "Let us cut to the chase, residents are not cash cows.

"They already pay for waste and recycling services through their green bin and council tax.

"Yet under these proposals, they are being asked to do more, pay more - follow more rules and jump through more hoops in return for service reductions.

"But what do they get back? No investment in infrastructure, no plans to improve Northwich tip – which already has queues of up to 30 minutes' long."

Cllr Nathan Pardoe, (regeneration), said: "I suppose the alternative for residents is an unsustainable service or fewer sites.

"I think in that context residents will support keeping the local sites open."

The council operates seven HWRCs across the borough, in Chester, Ellesmere Port, Frodsham, Neston, Northwich, Tattenhall and Winsford.

Each year, they are visited around 740,000 times and process approximately 40,000 tonnes of household waste and recycling.

Currently 60 per cent of the waste is recycled or re-used.

Last year it cost £2.4 million to operate the sites and manage the recyclable waste, and a further £1.3 million to dispose of the non-recyclable waste.