North Dorset alerted to waste collection changes

The new recycle for Dorset service, which was introduced in Christchurch and part of East Dorset in October 2012 (see letsrecycle.com story), will be rolled out across North Dorset and the rest of East Dorset from Monday 10 June.

During January, people in North Dorset and parts of East Dorset including Alderholt, Corfe Mullen, Cranborne, Holt, Sixpenny Handley, Sturminster Marshall, Wimborne St Giles and surrounding villages will receive a letter and leaflet introducing the new service and what it means for them.

Cllr Hilary Cox, chair of the Dorset Waste Partnership Joint Committee, said: We are writing to people now to introduce their new collection service and let them know that they may need to contact us before the end of February.

The new service, which is already being well used by residents in Christchurch and other parts of East Dorset, is clean, easy-to-use and enables people to recycle more at home, including plastic pots, tubs and trays.

Its also flexible.While most households should have no problems using the new service, there will be genuine reasons why the standard containers will not be suitable for everyone and we may be able to agree suitable alternatives.

Service

For most households, the standard recycle for Dorset service will consist of a weekly collection of cooked and uncooked food waste using a 23-litre outdoor bin and a 7-litre kitchen caddy; a fortnight collection of recycling using a 240-litre wheeled bin for plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays, paper and cardboard, tins and cans and aerosols; residents existing recycling box for glass; a small, reusable bag for batteries; and, a fortnightly collection of residual waste using a 140-litre wheeled bin.

Residents can also pay now for a new, optional garden waste collection starting in June. The fortnightly service runs all year round and costs 35 a year for a 240-litre wheelie bin or 25 a year for a reusable 120-litre bag.

Steve Burdis, director of the Dorset Waste Partnership, said: The fortnightly collection reduces the need for bonfires and trips to the recycling centre. The optional service has proved very popular in Christchurch and the rest of East Dorset, where more than 13,000 households have subscribed since last summer.

Joint working

The seven councils that make up the DWP – Dorset county council, Christchurch borough council, East Dorset district council, North Dorset district council, Purbeck district council, West Dorset district council and Weymouth & Portland borough council – have agreed to introduce the new recycle for Dorset collection service to replace the previous 12 different collection schemes across the county. By working together, the councils aim to drive down costs by 2m a year.

The new service will be rolled out across Dorset (not including Bournemouth and Poole) in phases by 2015. Christchurch and the part of East Dorset that includes Ferndown, Wimborne and Verwood were first to start using the new service last October.

The DWP is holding a series of public roadshows where residents will be able to see the new containers and speak to members of the DWP team.