The fortnightly scheme will cover over 20,000 households in the north of the Scottish city and uses a lidded black box for cans, glass and plastic bottles and a white bag for paper and cardboard.
The kerbside scheme was officially launched by Lord Provost John Reynolds at Glashieburn Primary School. “This exciting new recycling scheme is a first for the city of Aberdeen but it is only the initial stages of the city council's 20-year Waste Implementation Plan and school children all over the city will be able to see the environmental benefits for themselves in the future.”
The council spent a total of 65,000 on the 20,000 bags and boxes for the new scheme. The boxes were supplied by Egbert and Taylor of Droitwich, at 2.30 each, and the re-usable jute bags, at 92p each, came from Bristol-based JPK Trade Supplies.
The money for the new kerbside collection came from a 24 million grant from the Scottish Executive's Strategic Waste Fund awarded to Aberdeen city council in August 2003 (see letsrecycle.com story). The grant was made to fund the city's Waste Implementation Plan which it hopes will “revolutionise” its waste management.
The new kerbside scheme means the city has met one of the targets in the Plan for 2003-04. The Plan also includes the introduction of a green waste collection to 12,000 households this year and expanding the new kerbside collection to 80,000 households.
In 2002-03 Aberdeen recycled just 7.5% of its waste, below the Scottish average of 9.6% but it is hoped that the Scottish Executive's funding will help Aberdeen reach its recycling targets of 25% by 2005-06 and 27% by 2007-2008.
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