Somerset faces the potential closure of five of its 16 household waste recycling centres, including the site in Castle Cary, as part of the council's efforts to address a significant budget shortfall.

This proposal, part of a broader plan to save over £35m, aims to help the council manage a projected £100m budget gap for the upcoming financial year.

Somerset Council, in partnership with Biffa, currently operates 16 recycling centres across the county. The proposal to close five of these centres, including the one in Castle Cary, is estimated to save approximately £963,000. Additionally, the council might sell off the land of these centres for further income.

BBC Somerset reported on January 17 that the centres in Castle Cary, Cheddar, Crewkerne, Dulverton, and Williton are the ones facing closure. This move is expected to bring in £883,000 by April 2025 and an additional £80,000 by the following year.

The council said a final decision would be taken "based on those sites that offer the largest saving per tonne" and the final sites on the chopping block could change depending on commercially sensitive discussions.

A spokesman said: "We have a proposal that's modelled on the closure of five sites and what savings we understand that would deliver, but this needs more work. Commercial negotiations are ongoing and could change sites considered at risk.

"When there are firm proposals there will be detailed consultation and plenty of opportunity for people share their views before decisions are made.

"The saving is modelled on the closure of five sites, the savings that could potentially deliver, visitor numbers and tonnages.

"However, it is important to appreciate that commercial negotiations are ongoing with our contractor and the five sites considered at risk could change depending on the outcome those negotiations."

If the list published by BBC Somerset is accurate, it means longer journeys to recycling centres for four settlements which are experiencing significant housing growth.

The council confirmed that any closures would not be reversed should its financial position improve, and that some of the sites could be sold off to generate a capital receipt.

A spokesman said: "The closures will be permanent. We own some land that sites are on, but not all, so it would depend.

"Any decision to sell land would be subject to further discussions and decision-making processes."

In addition to closing the recycling centres, the council intends to save a further £235,000 by implementing a new permit system to restrict the remaining sites solely to Somerset residents.

Several recycling centres lie close to the borders of neighbouring counties, with Chard attracting numerous residents from east Devon and west Dorset, while Frome is often used by Wiltshire residents.

A spokesman said: "The introduction of a county-wide permit booking scheme will allow Somerset residents only to access the recycling site network.

"This would prevent access to the sites by non-residents and therefore reduce

the amount of waste and cost of running the sites."

The council's corporate and resources scrutiny committee will debate the current budget proposals in Bridgwater on February 2.

Revised proposals will come before the executive in Taunton on February 7, with the final decision being taken by the full council in Bridgwater on February 20.

The county's recycling centres are currently in the following locations:

• Saltlands Avenue, Bridgwater (near the tidal barrier construction site)
• Dimmer Lane, Castle Cary
• Beeching Close, Chard (near the new enterprise centre)
• Wedmore Road, Cheddar (near the current terminus of the Strawberry Line)
• Blacknell Lane, Crewkerne (near phase one of the Crewkerne key site)
• Brushford Road, Dulverton
• Manor Furlong, Frome (near the Keyford Meadows development site)
• Bennett Road, Highbridge
• Mart Road, Minehead
• Bancombe Road, Somerton
• Farm Lane, Street (near Clarks Village)
• Venture Way, Taunton
• Higher Poole, Wellington
• Dulcolte Hill, nr Wells (near the Strawberry Line active travel route)
• Roughmoor, Williton
• Artillery Road, Yeovil