Working with the West Whitlawburn Housing Co-operative, the council is providing householders with re-usable sacks to store recyclable paper, cans and plastic bottles in their flats, before taking them to the recycling centres.
This new scheme for recycling household waste from tower blocks will be monitored very carefully and, if successful, extended to other tower block areas.
Cllr Gerry Convery, South Lanarkshire council
The scheme is using “Node” recycling points made by West Midlands firm Taylor, located in the car parks of the eight tower blocks taking part.
The company said the South Lanarkshire trial was part of a nationwide research programme that was starting shortly, aiming to show local authorities across the UK could benefit from providing high-rise residents with mini recycling centres.
Bobby Gavin, Taylor's sales manager for Scotland, North of England & Northern Ireland said: “The initial indications from Whitlawburn would suggest that the residents have wholeheartedly embraced recycling and we expect that there will be keen interest from local and national government in the results.”
Cllr Gerry Convery, chair of South Lanarkshire's community resources committee, said the flats scheme followed the “unqualified success” of the council's blue bin recycling service for low-rise properties.
The service has led to the council achieving a 35% recycling rate.
Monitored
Commenting on the high rise pilot, Cllr Convery said: “I am sure that householders in tower blocks will be very supportive of our new scheme and will join enthusiastically with around 121,000 householders already helping to make household recycling in South Lanarkshire such a resounding success. This new scheme for recycling household waste from tower blocks will be monitored very carefully and, if successful, extended to other tower block areas throughout South Lanarkshire.”
On the scheme, the Housing Co-Operative will help those residents who find it difficult to lift their sacks down to the recycling centres.
Housing Co-operative deputy director, Stephanie Marshall explained: “Where we have tenants who find it difficult to take the recycling sack down to the facility in the car park, our concierge will always lend a hand. The feedback from tenants has been very positive indeed and we find that their children and grandchildren, who are very aware of the need for recycling, have been giving them great encouragement to recycle.”
South Lanarkshire started its fortnightly blue bin service in October 2003 as a pilot scheme, before rolling it out to 120,000 of the borough's 141,000 homes between 2004 and 2007. The council has also run a fortnightly sack-based glass collection service for 52,000 since 2005.
The council said results from the scheme had been helped by its waste awareness team ensuring residents recycle the correct materials. The team has also visited schools and community groups to get the recycling message across.
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