A recommendation to close Sugden End recycling facility at Cross Roads is now generating more concern than any other local issue, according to a councillor.

The proposal was included in an initial draft budget for 2013/14 for Bradford Council, and has since faced a barrage of criticism.

Council chiefs suggested people would be able to use the recycling base in Keighley instead without experiencing major disruption.

Coun Andrew Thornton, executive member for environment, sport and sustainability, said he and his colleagues wanted a mature and open debate about what they could provide with dwindling resources.

But Worth Valley ward councillor Rebecca Poulsen said: “A petition has been started in the contact point in Haworth to keep Sugden End open. It’s a big deal - there’s a lot of public feeling about this.

“In the bigger scheme of things they wouldn’t even save a lot of money. They pay a lot of expensive overtime to operate the facility, so there has to be a better way of manning it.

“Lots of money has been spent on Sugden End, with new signage and layouts. It would be such a waste if they just closed it.

“Last Saturday afternoon I travelled from Haworth to the centre of Keighley to do my recycling and it took 25 minutes - and that was just to join the queue at the entrance.

“Many people have said they’re not going to recycle any more - they will throw it in their normal wheelie bins. Bigger things will get fly tipped.”

Coun Thornton said: “In the last two years the Council has made reductions of £72 million. It is now facing potential cuts of £30 million next year and £20 million the year after.

“Tough choices will have to be made about which services to do less of, which to do differently, which to charge for and which to stop.

“The Sugden End proposal is part of a wider measure to rationalise the number of household waste recycling centres (HWRCs) in the district where there are significant overlaps in catchment areas, or alternative sites within a reasonable travelling distance.

“Under our proposal the Keighley Stockbridge site would receive investment to ensure that all our retained HWRC sites are up to modern standards.”