Lancashire doubles its recycling rate but looks to improve further

The council increased the amount of material it recycled by nearly 24,000 tonnes between 1995 and 2000. But this is only 9% of rubbish produced and the council wants to increase this by improving the facilities at its household waste recycling centres and by supplying residents with home composting bins.

After a competitive tendering process, the council has awarded the contract for the supply and distribution of 20,000 home compost and kitchen scrap bins to Leeds-based company Blackwall Limited. The bins will be made from recycled plastic and will be distributed to residents in September.

The council is also improving its household waste recycling centres. Although a recent survey found that 72% of residents questioned were happy with the sites, the council felt that the sites could be used to promote a more positive message and encourage more people to recycle.

To make it easier for people to recycle their rubbish better signage is being introduced at the sites. The council is also standardising its recycling facilities so that residents will be able to recycle a wide range of items including paper and cards, newspapers and magazines, soil, scrap metal, garden waste, batteries, oil, glass, textiles and wood at all 26 household waste recycling centres. The changes are being carried out in partnership with the contractor, Lancashire Waste Services. Residents are also being encouraged to sort their waste before they get to the site and to ask for assistance.

County Councillor Brian Johnson, cabinet member for community and regeneration, said: “The latest figures, which show we are now recycling or composting 45,069 tonnes, are very encouraging but there is still a lot that can be done by everyone to decrease the amount of rubbish buried in landfill sites each year.”

He added: “The county council feels that we can use household waste recycling sites to promote a positive message and encourage people to recycle more. We have already carried out a pilot project at the Abbey Lane site in Burscough which increased the recycling rate from 44% to 58%. This scheme has been so successful that we are now extending it to all our other sites in Lancashire. Everyone can play their part in tackling the waste problem by looking at how they can improve how they deal with their waste.”