Rotherham Borough Council announce plans for shake-up of bin collection services

HOUSEHOLDERS will have to pay for their garden waste to be collected under a shake-up in bin collection services.

Rotherham Borough Council are planning a series of changes including a £40-a-year charge for taking away garden waste in an attempt to cut cost and boost recycling rates.

Other changes include increasing capacity for recycling paper, cardboard, glass and cans — but new bins for general waste will be 25 per cent smaller.

The proposals being considered include:

  • Replacing the existing blue bag and box with the green and black bins currently in use, to make recycling of paper, glass and cans easier
  • Providing all households with a new general waste bin — smaller than the existing black bin because residents will have increased capacity for recycling
  • Introducing the £40 charge for collection of green waste, which would be collected all year round rather than the current seven months of the year
  • The changes to collection would mean different frequencies for recycled waste to reflect the larger capacities of recycling bins.

This would involve:

Week one: General waste

Week two: Cans and bottles

Week three: General waste

Week four: Cardboard and paper

The council said there would still be no kerbside collection of plastics as these can be separated from general waste at its waste treatment facility in Manvers.

The council’s Cabinet member for waste, roads and community safety Cllr Emma Hoddinott said: “These proposed changes should result in a more efficient, cost effective service and help to increase recycling rates.

Residents have told us they want to recycle but feel the current blue box and bag scheme is not practical, bags get lost or blown away, and it also causes problems for our refuse collection teams.

“People’s shopping habits have also changed in recent years with online shopping increasing both the size and amount of cardboard many householders get, so bringing in bigger containers will help with storage and increase the amount of waste people can recycle.

“At the same time we know some residents would like green waste collections to take place all year round, whilst many others never use their green bin at all, so we need to try to strike the right balance.

“Every household in the borough relies on bin collections, so we have not been rushing to alter them. However the financial challenge we face means that no change is now not an option.

“We want to hear from as many residents as possible to ensure we continue to offer the best service that we can, and understand the circumstances of households before making those changes.”

The proposals will be discussed at a Cabinet meeting on November 13 and, if agreed, more details will be released after that date.

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