LOCAL residents could lose their green habits following the closure of recycling banks at York's Barbican Centre, a leading councillor has warned.

Containers for the collection of waste paper, glass, cans, textiles and shoes were taken away from the Barbican car park last month as a security measure before the Festival of Remembrance.

And with the centre closing for refurbishment after the recent UK Snooker Tournament, the containers never returned - with customers redirected to recycling banks in the St George's Fields car park, where an extra can bank has been added.

But Coun David Horton, Labour's environment spokesman, said he was concerned that the loss of facilities at the Barbican could get local people out of the recycling habit.

"Use of the recycling banks for those not able to utilise doorstep recycling or wishing to take advantage of the wider bank facilities becomes a habit," he said.

"Break that habit by removing the facility for a time, and it can be harder to get people back on board.

"The distance to St George's car park may not be great, but if you are laden down with bottles, cans and other items for recycling it can make a big difference.

"I hope the council can look again at ways to provide alternative facilities whilst the work is going on - the last thing we want to do is force people who used to walk to the Barbican facilities to have to drive elsewhere."

However, he said it was even more important that new facilities were provided when the Barbican re-opened, and said he was asking for this issue to be discussed at the Barbican Working Group.

The council spokesman said the authority was trying to contact the Barbican developers to discuss the possible reinstatement of the recycling facilities when the centre reopens.

Meanwhile, the authority has acted to ease concerns about rubbish left lying around the Barbican car park following its closure.

A local resident, Pamela Andrews, contacted the Evening Press to complain about bags of refuse which she said had been abandoned after the UK Snooker Tournament finished last Sunday. "I think it's disgusting," she said.

But a Barbican spokesman said the rubbish had been generated through decommissioning of the centre, and it had only been left lying around temporarily because of the late arrival of two skips, and had now been cleared up.

Updated: 08:42 Friday, December 03, 2004