Residents are being warned that tips could be temporarily closed by Essex Police over the Easter weekend if the surrounding roads become too busy.

The message comes from Essex County Council after a surge in vehicles arriving to dispose of waste post-lockdown. The situation applies to all recycling centres in the county, including the large Maldon centre in Park Drive, the Burnham-on-Crouch centre in Springfield Road and the South Woodham Ferrers centre in Ferrers Road.

A county council spokesperson explained: "Recycling centres across Essex are experiencing particularly high demand which is causing long queues and congestion.

"In line with government guidance for social distancing, all sites are currently operating at reduced capacity. This has resulted in disruption on surrounding roads, which is affecting local residents and businesses.

"Traffic management is in place for some sites to ease congestion. All sites are open, but could be subject to temporary closures by Essex Police if they get too busy."

Essex County Council and Love Essex are asking members of the public to:

-consider whether there is an alternative method to dispose of their waste. Other options include making use of kerbside collections or using Maldon District Council's bulky waste collection service, which you can find by using the link to the website here.

-remember that site rules and restrictions are in place for the health and safety of both the site staff and members of the public

-try to visit a recycling centre outside of peak times. Weekdays or later in the afternoon are usually quieter. The Bank Holiday weekend is expected to be particularly busy.

-return to the site at another time if you see there is a long queue. Some residents have waited for up to three hours to access certain sites.

For further information on recycling centres and site restrictions visit the Love Essex website using the link here.