We are encouraging our residents to recycle more as we look to reduce the amount of waste that is sent to landfill.
Over recent years we have added more waste types that can be recycled and made it easier for people to recycle through their burgundy bin. These included:
- Added waxed cartons to their list of items that can be recycled
- Added soft plastics to their list of items that can be recycled
- Removed the need to segregate paper
- Removed the need to wash out containers
Cabinet Member for the Environment, Councillor Anne Clarke said, “Our burgundy bin system is regarded very highly amongst our residents as they can recycle everything from soft plastics to waxed cartons, much of which other authorities do not recycle. I want to thank all those who do their bit and recycle their waste, but I also want to encourage those who don’t recycle - or just do a little - to do more.”
Our burgundy bin recycling scheme has a 93% satisfaction rate (results from Citizens Panel 2023), but the latest recycling figures for 2023/24 show a combined recycling and composting rate of 38.7%, which is a drop from 41% pre-Covid and considerably lower than the best performing councils who recycle and compost over 60%.
“This is what is perplexing us,” added Councillor Clarke. “Our residents obviously like and appreciate the service, but the recycling figures do not back this up and show people are not recycling enough of their waste.”
To help combat this, we will be launching a marketing campaign over the coming months to educate people on the benefits of recycling and raise awareness of what can be placed in the burgundy bin, whilst also improving access to recycling information on their website.
Councillor Clarke added, “It is far more cost-effective and productive to recycle than it is to produce new items, so we want to raise awareness and show the benefits of recycling so it will encourage our residents to put that cardboard box or that empty plastic carton in their burgundy bin rather than sending it to landfill.”
