IN more than 27 years with Worcester City Council, I can't recall a single subject that has attracted quite so much comment and attention as the planned introduction of wheelie bins - almost all of it based on half-truths and a fear of the unknown.

Few days go by that I don't receive letters on the subject or a call from a concerned councillor or a note from our Customer Services Centre where someone has called in to dismiss the scheme without first being aware of the facts.

The common feature of all these concerns is that virtually every argument is based on misconceptions that are removed from reality and really need addressing before they get a chance to take a hold.

Beyond that, I would go so far as to say that in two years' time all the fuss will have died down and the undoubted advantages and economies of the new system will be clear for all to see.

There was a similar outcry when we took the then controversial step of changing the existing collection point and introducing black bags. Remember?

I recall, too, that at the time there was even a very vocal call for the introduction of wheelie bins instead of black bags!

Chief among the concerns is that every home will have a large wheelie bin, like it or not.

Well, that won't happen. We have to have exceptions. Clearly, wheelie bins are totally impractical for people living in many flats and multi-occupation dwellings, so they will continue with the arrangement as it is now: black, clear and purple bags collected from a communal collection point where wheelie bins are already a fact of life.

Disabled or infirm residents can also apply to make special collection arrangements, and a leaflet we'll be distributing nearer the time will outline how to go about it.

Every case will be judged on its merits.

Secondly, smells. Here, I'm struggling to get to the root of the concern. Unlike flimsy plastic bags, wheelie bins are tough plastic and more importantly, they have flush and fitted lifting lids.

The upshot is that each unit is a sealed container - unlike the current plastic bags, of course, a high proportion of which are presently left out overnight ready for collection and prey to scavenging animals.

Mobility. Where's the problem? The bins are on wheels and they're made to be easily transportable from point to point. All we'll be asking is that residents wheel their bins to the boundary of their property, just as they do now with bags, and we'll do the rest.

Personally, I don't believe that we should expect residents to wheel bins through the house nor do I think that that will prove to be the reality. I make that point because one of the biggest mis-conceptions would appear to revolve around the bins' size.

No, we're not talking about the huge industrial-sized containers that you see outside the big city centre stores.

The actual size hasn't been determined yet, but we're talking about either 240 or 190-litre capacity bins that are more manageable than your old dustbin, and those we eventually select will be chosen to be compact, unobtrusive and so ordinary you simply won't notice them after a while.

All we're talking about is a return to dustbins, but this time they will be sealable, on wheels, and ultimately the same as those being used by every other resident in the county.

That's a point I particularly want to make because, don't forget, it's a county-wide "vision" that's the result of years of working parties, think-tanks and research based on the experiences of well over 100 councils that have already gone "wheelie".

We've even taken into account the views of residents in other councils - few of whom would return to the old style now that the wheelie-bin revolution has happened.

It's been a successful experience all over the UK and it'll ultimately prove to be the same here in Worcester. Just you wait and see!

We'd like to hear your views. Write to: Letters Page, Worcester Evening News, Hylton Road, Worcester, WR2 5JX, or e-mail: letters@thisisworcester .co.uk