And, the unitary authority is also looking to reduce the capacity of its 240 litre refuse bins to 140 as an added measure to boost recycling rates.
The proposals have been outlined in the council’s draft waste strategy 2015-2020, which has been made available to residents for consultation. The consultation runs until February 15, with the results likely to feed into debate over the proposals by councillors in 2016.
The council is currently engaged in a 25-year contractual arrangement with Suez. In 2014/15, it collected 126,000 tonnes of waste of which 47.5% was recycled or composted.
In the 2009/10 financial year the authority hit a peak recycling rate of 53.10% – but its performance has gradually declined due to less recyclable material being collected and changes in markets, the council claims.
‘Confusing’
Going forward, South Gloucestershire is aiming to increase its rate by reducing the number of recycling bags available to householders for dry recycling which it claims householders find ‘confusing’.
At present, residents have seven different receptacles for waste and recycling – including a separate green bag for paper, a light green bag for cardboard, a white bag for plastics, and a plastic container for batteries. All dry recyclables are collected fortnightly.
This proposal would see bags replaced with containers, which residents would be able to use ‘how they wish’. Collection crews will then separate the material at the kerbside during rounds.
To increase storage space for some residents, the council is also investigating the use of hard lids and stackable boxes for collections – which have been trialed in other parts of the UK including Conwy and St Helens.
Capacity
Another measure being looked at is a reduction in black bin capacity, which South Gloucestershire claims could increase recycling by 10% and save around £3 million per year by eliminating contamination. The council has cited WRAP’s research into residual waste capacity as a key influence on recycling behaviour as a driver for the policy.
While black bins will continue to be collected fortnightly, recycling collections will increase to a weekly service, the council has proposed.
Elsewhere the council is keen to increase supply of food waste to its local anaerobic digestion facility. It argues that if it can capture at least 10,000 of the 18,000 tonnes of food waste produced in the region each year it would mean a ‘sustainable stock’ for the plant.
Recycling officers will ramp up food waste communication efforts in order to boost capture of the material.
Aspirations
A summary states: “The strategy presents the best available options for South Gloucestershire to enable it to meet our environmental aspirations of reducing waste and encouraging a circular economy through recycling, reuse and repair.
“At the same time we also need to ensure financial targets are met to deliver savings to the council. The new proposed changes to the service intends to simplify the kerbside offering to residents. It will encourage reuse and recycling through; increasing recycling collections to weekly and reducing the size of the black bin. These two proposals come as a package and would be delivered together.”
Roadshows to discuss the proposals with members of the public will be held across South Gloucestershire from next week until January 2016.
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