New waste and recycling collections begin in Skye and Lochalsh
Highland Council’s new waste and recycling collection service is now underway in some areas of Skye and Lochalsh.
Councillor Graham MacKenzie, Chair of the Communities and Place Committee, said: “I am pleased to see the first of the new collections for non-recyclable waste and recycling bins have now started. This is another major milestone for the roll-out of the new waste and recycling services across Highland and I am pleased to see we have now reached Skye and Lochalsh as part of the planned roll-out programme - residents are reminded to check their new collection calendar.”
Plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays, metal tins and cans, empty aerosols, clean aluminium trays, and food and drink cartons can be all be recycled in the current green bin once it has been converted and will be collected every four weeks. Plastic film, wrap and soft plastics are not accepted in the green recycling bins.
Paper, card and carboard including newspapers and magazines, envelopes, paper, paperback books, shredded cards and wrapping paper, egg boxes and toilet roll tube, cereal and food sleeves and cardboard boxes can all be recycled in the blue bin once it has been converted and will be collected every four weeks.
A handy guide titled “Your waste and recycling service is changing” is being delivered with the new grey, non -recyclable waste bins and explains what is changing and how to use the new recycling service. The booklet also lists common items that cannot be put in the recycling bins.
A new collection calendar is also enclosed with the booklet and clearly shows the date to start presenting the new, grey non-recyclable waste bin and the collection schedule for other bins.
Although the collections have started in some towns and villages in Skye and Lochalsh, the scheduled deliveries of the new bins are still ongoing. The recent adverse weather has impacted the deliveries for some households as it was not safe or practicable to deliver bins in such high winds last week – it is anticipated that all bins will be delivered by the end of this week.
The delivery teams are working hard to catch up and households should continue to use their green bins for non-recyclable waste until their new grey bin is delivered. Households are advised that the bins are being delivered according to the refuse and recycling collection routes, therefore not all properties within a town/area will have their bins delivered at the same time.
Business waste deliveries are on track and customers will receive new clearly labelled recycling bins along with information and guidance on how to use the new recycling service. For business waste enquiries, please email business.waste@highland.gov.uk.
A popular question which often gets asked is “what happens to the recycling?”
The recycling from each of the blue and green recycling bins collected in the Skye and Lochalsh area will be bulked up in separate bays at the Portree Waste Transfer Station.
The paper and card are then transported to Glasgow to Smurfit Westrock’s recycling facility where it will be graded and baled, before being sent onto a paper mill within the UK for processing into brown paper reels. This is then manufactured into new high quality consumer packaging products.
The mixed plastic and metal containers will be transported to Wyllie’s Recycling Ltd, Materials Recovery Facility in Perth which is specifically designed to sort and separate the mixed plastic and metal containers into various material streams. The separated materials such as aluminium, steel and HDPE plastic and PET plastic are baled and then transported to UK manufacturers and made into new containers. The clear HDPE plastic is used to make new milk bottles and clear PET plastic is used to make new water bottles, all within the UK.
Since 2023, non-recyclable waste from Skye and Lochalsh area has been sent for disposal at Viridor’s Energy Recovery Facility in Dunbar, East Lothian where the material is processed and treated to generate electricity which is exported to the National Grid. Energy Recovery is better for the environment as it creates less greenhouse gas emissions compared to landfilling waste, even when taking haulage into account.
More detailed information on the service change is available for householders on the Council’s website including the programme of bin deliveries: www.highland.gov.uk/binchanges