Green household waste bins could be radically reduced in size under new plans from Highland Council
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Green household waste bins could be radically reduced in size under new plans from Highland Council to boost recycling while slashing the amount of landfill.
The proposal is envisage the current bin size going from 240 litres to 140 litres – but only if the local authority are successful in accessing a Scottish Government fund that would help pay for the change.
Though the cost of the change of replacing the bins for an estimated 110,000 Highland households would be significant there was no precise figure mentioned nor was there any information on what happens to the old wheelie bins.
The cash-strapped council – currently estimating a £50 million deficit over the next two years – would be unlikely to be able to afford replacing the the bins themselves.
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But there is concern within the council about a “backlash from constituents” who may feel they need the larger bin, particularly those with large families, but despite the plans will go to the communities and place committee tomorrow for a decision.
Behind the move are four “changes” that need to be addressed.
The first is the council signed the Household Recycling Charter which aims to build upon recycling progress, ensure waste is considered a resource and to recognise the opportunities of a more circular economy.
And the Code of Practice outlines the essential criteria that is “vital in the effort to achieve a level of consistency” in waste and recycling services in Scotland – that means reducing non-recyclable waste.
The second is the Delivering Scotland’s circular economy, a Route Map to 2025 strategy – to develop an economy that, in its simplest forms, reuses materials rather than simply disposing of them.
Third is the Scottish Government's waste and recycling targets to reduce the total waste in Scotland by 15 per cent against 2011 levels, food waste by 33 per cent against 2013 levels, cut 70 per cent of remaining waste and send no more than five per cent of the remaining waste to landfill.
Fourth is the opportunity to access funding from the five-year £70 million Recycling Improvement Fund which aims to accelerate progress towards the country’s waste and recycling and net zero targets.
Finally there is the deposit return scheme, an updated version of returning glass bottles for cash, which is due to start in August 2023, and hopes to collect 90 per cent of containers placed on the market by 2024.
The scheme will introduce a 20p deposit on single-use PET (polyethylene terephthalate), steel, aluminium and glass drinks containers, which will be refundable once the container is returned for recycling.
