Wheelie Bins to be rolled out to help boost low recycling figures

20 January 2011

Harrogate is set to have Wheelie bins to help boost the currently poor figures for recycling.

Only 30% of waste is recycled, making it one of the lowest in the country and under this scheme it is expected to rise to 50%

The scheme now has the go-ahead by the Harrogate Borough Council.

Under the scheme wheelie bins would be installed in each household with fortnightly kerbside collection of waste and recyclable materials.

No date has been announced for when it will start.

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22 September 10

WASTE COLLECTION REVIEW

Harrogate Borough Council is considering proposals to introduce kerbside recycling of cardboard and plastic bottles as part of an overall review of its household waste collection service.

On 22 September 2010, members of Harrogate Borough Council’s Executive Cabinet will look at proposals to increase recycling and divert waste from landfill.

The proposals include extending the kerbside recycling service to include cardboard and plastic bottles, and introducing wheeled bins for landfill waste. The council already collects glass bottles, tin cans, newspapers and garden waste from most properties, and proposals would seek to extend the range of materials collected as well as expanding the service to include more households.

The options being considered include introducing wheeled bins to replace the black sack service, with residents having a weekly collection that would alternate between landfill waste and recyclable waste. Currently, Harrogate is the only remaining council in the County to operate a weekly black sack collection of waste that goes straight to landfill.

Cabinet will refer their recommended option to Overview and Scrutiny councillors, with a final decision being taken by full council. If approved, a two-year programme, starting in 2011, will see the entire district separating their rubbish into recyclables and household landfill waste.

The council accepts that there will be a small number of properties where wheeled bins can’t be accommodated and these will require a flexible approach with the council agreeing policies to cater for this.

Councillor Michael Harrison, Cabinet Member for the Environment, says that residents and environmental groups have made it very clear that they want to see the council expand the type of materials that are collected as part of the household waste service. He added: “This is only possible when linked to an overall review of the method and frequency of waste collection. Without this the borough council will not be able to offer what residents want or meet targets of 40 per cent of household waste being recycled by the year 2013″.

“Our residents currently recycle 32 per cent of household waste. Other councils in North Yorkshire who have changed to this type of service have seen a sharp reduction in the amount of waste sent tor landfill and an improvement in recycled waste. In 2009/10 those authorities’ recycling performance ranged from 39 per cent to 52 per cent.”

As well as wanting more recycling, residents tell us they want a catch up service after Bank Holidays which we don’t currently offer with our kerbside recycling service, but we would be able to with this expanded service.

“Residents will obviously have questions and some concerns, which is why at this stage we will be asking Overview and Scrutiny to look at our preferred option, said Cllr Harrison. “ We would not proceed with a ‘one size fits all’ approach and we would plan to assess properties that couldn’t accommodate a wheeled bin, remote and hard to service properties as well as residents who might need assistance to put their waste out for collection or larger households. This level of detail will be planned once full council decides on the agreed overall approach to the service.”