THE long wait for a purpose-built household waste tip in Thornbury could soon be over.

South Gloucestershire Council chiefs have given the go ahead for the compulsory purchase to secure a site in Short Way on the town's industrial estate for use as a civic amenity site.

Talks with the unnamed leaseholders are still under way but in the meantime the council is setting up a temporary "skip park" in the leisure centre car park where residents can dispose unwanted, non hazardous items sparing them the trek to Yate or Little Stoke - currently the nearest waste disposal and recycling centres.

The skips should be place by the middle of next month.

Residents and town councillors have long been pressing for Thornbury to have its own facility.

Plans for a permanent site at Tytherington quarry were dropped after a government planning inspector said the location was unsuitable and advised the council to remove the scheme from its waste strategy.

Cabinet members have now ruled that a site must be set up in the town "at the earliest opportunity" and have authorised Corporate Resources director Paul Appleton to exercise compulsory purchase powers in respect of the chosen site off Midland Way.

They also approved the acquisition of the lease interest subject to a contribution from waste operators SITA towards capital costs.

Town Council environment committee chairman Benj Emmerson said: "this is very good news. We have been waiting for Thornbury to have its own dedicated civic amenity site for as long as I have been on the council. I have always felt that introducing the twin bin recycling scheme without an amenity site was a risk.

When you are only getting a fortnightly collection you need the ability to take stuff to a disposal site.

"At the moment people have to travel miles to the nearest site and people without cars have a real problem."

He said the permanent facility would obviously take time to set up and he welcomed the provision of temporary skips in the interim.

Council spokesman Kirsty Steadman said the council already owned the freehold of the land and the compulsory purchase owners were in respect of buying the lease.

"SITA's contract with council calls for the setting up of four civic amenity sites and at present there are only three - in Mangotsfield, Little Stoke and Patchway," she said. "The purchase of the lease on the Short Way site will be met by SITA and there will be cost to the council.

"The matter has been delayed by negotiations to acquire the site and it was decided to go ahead with a temporary facility at the leisure centre until the new site is up and running."T