Huge boost to flats recycling in London

A local authority-run programme in London to improve recycling in flats has seen an increase in dry recycling and food waste collections from estates with 26 boroughs, organisers say.

The London Waste & Recycling Board (LWARB) this week issued an evaluation of its Flats Recycling Programme, which has seen improved services provided to a massive 522,718 households.

The programme has been supported by LWARB with more than 4.1 million of funding distributed to London local authorities since July 2010. The programme aims to overcome common barriers associated with recycling in flats and high-rise properties.

As a result, changes have been made to recycling services provided to the households through 29 projects across four main headings, including: reusable bags, improvements to signage, food waste bring banks, and improvements to dry recycling services.

The report concluded the highest increase in recycling came from the capture of dry recycling, followed by food waste schemes, as councils invested in bring banks, conversion of refuse chutes to recycling, mini banks on individual floors and large scale changes such as borough wide collections.

Boroughs

In total, 11 boroughs implemented significant improvements to their dry recycling services. However, robust data was only available for three of these boroughs due to problems with monitoring.

Financial savings were also achieved as schemes established by the programme were found to cost 36% less than anticipated due to the joint procurement of equipment such as reusable bags, purchase of refurbished rather than new containers, and vehicle fleet efficiency. As a result, the programme spent 800,000 less than was forecast.

It also found that Croydon, one of the first councils to receive funding, received 370,000 to implement a communal food waste scheme to over 15,000 households, which is currently diverting almost 40kg of food waste per household each year.

In Harrow, which received almost 330,000 in LWARB funding, the council expanded its existing commingled communal bring bank service to an additional 8,000 flats in the borough.

At sites where landlords or building managers were not available, letters and leaflets were distributed to residents asking how many bins were required and where they should be located. Once in place, collection crews carried out inspections of each bin prior to collection to assess contamination levels.

Recommendations

The report also recommends best practice elements from each scheme type, so that local authorities in the rest of London and the UK can use the information to assist their own flats recycling projects.

Commenting on the evaluation, LWARB chair Richard Tracey, said: The Flats Recycling Programme has been a success. The Programme has enabled London Boroughs to introduce new collection schemes and improve existing services whilst positively contributing to the recycling rate in the capital.

Over the next four years, LWARB hopes to recycle an additional 60,236 tonnes of waste and increase its recycling to an average of 28.81kg per household in boroughs covered by the schemes. It will also try and avoid over 40,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions.

Established in 2007, LWARB works in conjunction with the Mayor of London and London councils to improve waste management in the capital. In September this year, the Board announced 1.2 million in funding for 10 new projects which would expand existing services and provide household recycling in London by March 2015 (see letsrecycle.com story).