The move is being pushed through as a part of the voluntary recycling charter developed by the Zero Waste Taskforce, a joint initiative between the Scottish Government, the Confederation of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) and Zero Waste Scotland.
A final version of the charter and its associated code of practice have been agreed and formally announced today. This includes recommendation of the adoption of a three-stream recycling system, which will include one container for glass, one for paper and card, and one for metals and plastics, together with existing food waste and residual collections.
Click here for the full text of the Scottish Household Recycling Charter.
Councils are able to sign up to the charter from January, after which point they will receive support from Zero Waste Scotland in developing plans to introduce the new system. Over time, the intention is to move to a common colour system for containers across local authorities.
Confusion
Commenting on the charter, Mr Lochhead said: “This new consistent approach will sweep away the confusion that we all face every time we come across yet another difficult recycling system. It will maximise the quantity and quality of materials captured, and allow us to give consistent national messages about what people should do with their recycling, wherever they are in Scotland.
“This work has been undertaken in collaboration with COSLA, and I congratulate local authorities in taking the initiative with the development of this charter, and working together to deliver a good outcome for all councils and, ultimately, for Scotland.”
Consistent
COSLA spokesman for development, economy and sustainability, councillor Stephen Hagan, added: “COSLA Leaders, by agreeing the principles of a more consistent approach to recycling across Scotland, have taken a step towards developing a hugely significant opportunity that will unlock the value in household waste, allowing councils to fully benefit from the economic opportunities associated with the recycling industry, creating jobs and delivering value for money services.
“I believe that this proposed approach will make it even easier for people to recycle and would encourage everyone to support us in this by using the systems correctly and to their maximum to get the best value for money. Doing this is in all our interests.”
Similar moves to foster more consistent recycling are taking place in England, spearheaded by the Defra minister Rory Stewart. However, Defra has already stated that it will not support moves towards a single method of recycling, instead looking to draw up a ‘menu’ of five or six different systems that councils might look to adopt.
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