Aberdeenshire ‘to save £765,000’ with three-weekly collections

The council explained that the savings will be made by segregating paper and cardboard through the introduction of a new orange-lidded bins for all other dry recyclables.

The council’s in-house team currently collects commingled recycling in a blue-lidded bin and residual waste in a black bin on alternative weeks.

Under the new system, the blue-lidded bin will remain for paper and card only and will be collected on a three weekly cycle with residual and the new orange-lidded bin.

The new 180-litre orange-lidded bin will be for tins, cans, foil, aerosols and cartons, as well as plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays.

The council noted that food waste and batteries will continue to be collected weekly, adding residents can pick up food waste caddies and battery recycling bags free of charge from their local recycling centre.

Rollout

While the sequence of areas for the full rollout of the new collection cycle is still being finalised, residents can expect the first set of orange-lid bin deliveries to begin in April. The will then receive a postcard indicating the rollout of the service, with a letter and an information booklet to follow.

The council plans to work with those who can’t accommodate an extra bin to provide alternatives such as smaller or shared bins or bag collections. Those who need additional refuse capacity can apply as long as they demonstrate a “thorough” use of the recycling services, including food waste caddy, the local authority said.

The change will also affect trade customers, for which mixed recycling will be split into two separate collections, the council outlined. Similarly, one recycling bin is to be used for paper, card and cardboard, with a separate recycling bin for plastic bottles, plastic tubs, plastic pots, plastic cups, cans, tins, empty aerosol cans, drinks cartons, and clean foil.

Target

The move is hoped to help the council reach the Scottish government’s target to recycle 70% and reduce the percentage of waste sent to landfill to 5% by 2025.

The local authority outlined that there has been little change in recycling rates across Aberdeenshire over the past five years, meaning a shift needs to happen to achieve this.

The change is funded with £3.4 million from the Scottish Government’s Recycling Improvement Fund and comes on the back of a recent waste composition analysis, which found that approximately 33% of what is currently being sent to landfill can be recycled at kerbside.