After receiving £3.4 million from the Recycling Improvement Fund, the council announced plans last year to introduce a three-weekly residual waste and a twin-stream recycling system throughout 2023 (see letsrecycle.com story).
As part of the rollout to businesses, each customer will receive the orange-lid recycling bin which will be collected for free. This will be used for metal tins, cans, aerosols and foil, food and drink cartons, plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays, and will be collected every three weeks alongside household collections.
When the rollout reaches their area, trade customers’ blue-lid bins, currently used for all recycling, will become for paper, card, and cardboard only.
Trade customers will however be charged for a rejected collection if their recycling and waste is not correctly separated before their first collection on the new twin-stream service.
Vice-chair councillor Isobel Davidson said: “As trade customers begin to understand their recycling ratio on the new twin-stream service, the council will work with them to help get the ratio right and supply more, or less, bin capacity. Businesses should be considering how they will internally communicate the change, separate their recycling, and reduce their waste for when the rollout progresses into their area.”
Trade recycling customers on the Charity Allowance will continue to receive a free waste collection service in line with the standard service provided to households.
Collaboration
The council said it has “collaborated closely” with businesses to ascertain the optimal number of bins required by each trade customer.
Notably, the allocation of additional bins will not contribute to existing recycling costs throughout the 2023/24 period. The council said once the correct number of bins for kerbside collections is established, charges will be applicable.
Aberdeenshire council’s infrastructure services committee chair, councillor Alan Turner, said: “The new recycling service helps to improve the quantity and quality of the materials that are processed. Collecting paper, card, and cardboard separately from other recycling will ensure it stays clean and dry—reducing contamination and creating a higher quality product that helps to subsidise the costs of waste collection.”
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