Part of Cory Environmental's Western Riverside contract (see letsrecycle.com story), the new single bag collection scheme has received 1.4 million from the London Recycling Fund. Running costs for the orange bag collection are thought to be about 1 million per year and will come from the council budget.
The orange sack scheme means that residents will not have to sort their own recyclables, unlike the previous rainbow sack scheme. The new scheme collects paper, card, glass, tin cans and has added plastic bottles to the list. About 700,000 from the London Recycling Fund was spent on five new collection vehicles.
Over the next 12 months the council hopes to see the amount of waste recycled double through the orange sack scheme. Wandsworth’s current recycling rate is 10% with a target of 16% for this year.
Cllr Guy Senior, cabinet member for environment and public services, said: “The early indications are this scheme could prove to be a runaway success. This simple 'one sack fits all' scheme could be just the thing to massively increase our recycling rates. Now people don't really have an excuse not to get involved. Nothing could be easier than putting all your week's papers, tin cans, plastic bottles and glass bottles in the same sack.”
The council has also undertaken a promotional campaign. There was an environmentally friendly mobile advertising campaign in the form of a rickshaw style sandwich-board which was bicycled through the shopping centres of Balham, Tooting, Putney, Clapham Junction and Wandsworth.
The council has made additional facilities available for people who live in flats to recycle. The provision of an extra 500 new Euro bins for paper and card are now being installed on housing estates in addition to the 300 already in place. By the end of 2006 the council plans to have 1,500 Euro bins at locations throughout the borough.
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