Adur and Worthing halve recycling collections

Councillors agreed last week that recycling services would switch from weekly to fortnightly collections, under a new collection service for the two West Sussex districts.

The two districts have been working together to provide waste services since 2001, but are now to provide a single, unified service.

” The service could send out the wrong message, but there are mitigating factors. We have reduced the size of the refuse bin from the standard 240 litres to 140 litres. “
– Paul Willis, Worthing council
The decision to cut back on recycling collections came after the borough councils asked residents what kind of services they would like to see.

Of the 20,000 residents who responded to a survey, 43% wanted a weekly refuse collection service alongside a fortnightly recycling service.

The new system, to be introduced from next September, would have the potential to discourage residents from recycling as much material, since collections are less frequent.

Bins
However, Worthing council's waste strategy manager, Paul Willis, explained that householders would be provided with relatively small bins for their residual waste, with large wheeled bins for recyclable materials.

Mr Willis told lestrecycle.com: “The service could send out the wrong message, but there are mitigating factors. We have reduced the size of the refuse bin from the standard 240 litres to 140 litres, helping to reduce refuse.”

“We will provide a standard size 240 litre bin for recycling to replace the current blue boxes, which take paper, cardboard, cans and plastic,” he went on.

Glass
Worthing's waste strategy manager also revealed: “We will also introduce a collection for glass, increasing recycling capacity by six times overall.”

Mr Willis said the new bins would help to preserve the council's 20% recycling rate, along with the new recycling scheme for glass.

The new recycling service will be rolled out jointly by Adur and Worthing from their depot in Commerce Way, Lancing. It will take place in four stages, to cover around 90% of the 76,000 properties in the region.

Mr Willis said: “We think it will be cost neutral as the wheeled bin service is slower, with different vehicle and staff requirement. But there are economies of scale in the council's joining forces, and joint procurement should save money on vehicle and bin prices.”