The increases over the last financial year have been heralded by the authority in the wake of service changes which included the introduction of communal dry recycling bins and a reduction in the size of residual bins.
The city council estimates that as a result of the improvements, its city-wide recycling rate for 2015/16 could increase to around 41.7% compared to 39.1% in 2014/15.
And, the authority has also reported a 10% drop in waste sent to landfill since 2014/15.
Environment Convener, Councillor Lesley Hinds, said: “I am delighted with these figures, which demonstrate just how effective the new recycling service has been.
“Obviously, updates to the system have been something of a culture change for those involved, but I’m pleased to see that, now it has bedded in, residents are really taking to recycling responsibly and reducing the amount of waste we send to landfill.”
Service change
According to the council, increases in recycling tonnages have coincided with an awareness campaign aimed at promoting its new kerbside recycling service which is now provided to more than 140,000 homes since its introduction in 2014.
Changes to collections began in September 2014, aimed at expanding the kerbside capacity for recyclables (see letsrecycle.com story).
Under the collections overhaul, 240-litre green residual bins became commingled recycling bins, with a new smaller 140L grey wheelie bin rolled out for residual waste (see letsrecycle.com story).
Shortly after the new roll out, the council had noted that materials being recycled per week had risen from 2kg to an estimated 3kg in the areas with access to the new service.
Communal
As the first phase was rolled out to housing, the city council is now hoping for a similar uptake across tenements and other flatted properties, which are still served by communal bins.
Actions already underway to improve provision, said the authority, include the installation over the last six months of more than 940 communal dry mixed recycling bins and 617 communal glass bins on Edinburgh’s streets. The roll-out of more communal recycling facilities is planned for other areas of the city with the aim of making it easier for residents in tenements to recycle their waste.
And, next month, Edinburgh is to launch “an interactive map which will help citizens locate communal recycling and landfill bins near their homes”.
