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02
Sept 2024
New bins system proposed for North Yorkshire
Residents have just two weeks left to share their views on a proposed new approach to collecting household rubbish and recycling in North Yorkshire.
North Yorkshire Council wants to provide households with two wheelie bins for recycling – one for glass, cans and plastic, and one for paper and card, with alternate fortnightly collections.
It is part of the local authority’s attempts to cut costs and harmonise services since it succeeded the old district and borough councils, including Harrogate Borough Council, in April last year.
Harrogate district residents currently use black boxes for recycling card and paper. New blue-lidded wheelie bins are bring rolled out for glass, cans and plastic.
Having two wheelie bins would increase capacity for recycling and reduce the risk of material being blown away by the wind on collection days.
Separating recyclable material reduces contamination. But the current system in the Harrogate district means paper or card can get wet when it rains, which reduces its resale value to recycling manufacturers.
The collection of non-recyclable rubbish will remain the same as it is now, and residents can also opt-in for garden waste collections. This would mean most households have a total of either three or four wheelie bins.
The council’s Let’s Talk Rubbish public engagement runs until midnight on Monday, September 16.
About 310,000 tonnes of household waste is collected each year from more than 300,000 properties in North Yorkshire. About 45 per cent of this is reused, recycled, or composted.
If the new system is adopted, everyone in the county will receive the same recycling collection service, regardless of where they live.
Cllr Greg White, the council’s executive member for managing our environment, said: “The Let’s Talk Rubbish survey has already gathered more than 6,000 responses, and we want to remind those who haven’t already done so to get involved before it’s too late.
We know this is an important subject, so through this public engagement, we want to know how you feel about your existing collection service and what we can all do to help achieve our goals.
The changes would mean residents have the capacity to recycle more, and it would also provide the best value for money, as high-quality, clean recyclable material is worth more to manufacturers.
By reducing waste and increasing our recycling, we can also help to conserve our natural resources, protect the environment, save energy, and support our ambitions of becoming carbon negative.
All local authorities must meet the requirements of the Environment Act 2021 and move towards improved recycling collections, where possible. The government also expects all councils to recycle 65 per cent of their waste by 2035.
You can take part in the survey here.
Feedback can also be provided in the following ways:
- · Contact North Yorkshire Council by calling 0300 131 2 131 - when prompted say ‘Let’s Talk’.
- · Email LetsTalk@northyorks.gov.uk.
Accessible formats of the survey are available on request.
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