From the beginning of this month, refuse collection crews have been told to leave behind and rubbish put out by householders that does not fit into their 240 litre wheelie bins with the lids closed completely. Waste that does not fit in the bin will be left behind until the following week.
The council said that the 160,000 Bournemouth residents produce 120,000 tonnes of household waste a year, well above the national average per person. It added even with a recycling rate of about 23%, landfill space in the region is becoming limited.
By introducing the restriction on how much waste residents can have collected, the council hopes to promote waste minimisation, recycling and re-use. In its waste management strategy, the council set a target to reduce the amount of waste collected from residents each year from 660kg per person in 2003/04 to 460 kg in 2005/06.
Councillor John Hayter, cabinet member for sustaining our environment, said: “It is vital that residents try to cut down on the amount of rubbish we are creating. If everybody plays a small part we can make a massive difference. The fact is that we are running out of space.”
Blue bag
The council operates a weekly blue bag kerbside recycling scheme to the all properties in Bournemouth, collecting paper, cans, clothes and shoes. And, plastic bottles, glass, cardboard, books and foil can be recycled at 27 recycling sites across the borough. For 2005/06, the council has a statutory target to recycle 30% of the household waste it collects.
In a further attempt to reduce waste produced in Bournemouth, the council has enforced a limit access policy on its Millhams civic amenity site. Previously used by people outside the borough, now only local residents will be able to use the site.
A council spokeswoman said: “We have actually got an exclusion policy which we have just introduced so only Bournemouth residents can use the tip.”
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