Rural Kerbside Recycling – Blue Wheelie Bin Roll Out begins
Over the next few weeks residents in the rural parts of East Ross, Edderton, Mid Ross, the Black Isle, Inverness and Nairn which are not part of the blue box scheme can expect to take delivery of a new blue wheelie bin for their recycling waste. Householders should already have received an introductory leaflet outlining how the new service will operate, and may even have had a visit from a member of the Highland Council’s Waste Awareness Team.
The bins, which will be collected on a four-weekly rota beginning in March, can take paper, cardboard, tin cans and plastic bottles. Householders are being asked to flatten tins, plastic bottles and cardboard and to remove caps and rinse plastic bottles and cans although there is no need to remove the labels.
The new blue bins will be delivered with a booklet containing full details on how to use the bin and a calendar showing collection dates. Normal weekly refuse collections will remain the same. Those households that already receive the blue box / brown bin service will be unaffected.
Chairman of TEC Services, Councillor John Laing said: “Some people have expressed surprise that the items will be mixed in the same bin but this is because at the recycling plant they will be separated by a mixture of both mechanical and manual means. It is therefore very important that the items are loose and not placed in plastic bags or jammed together, for example a tin can should not be jammed into a cardboard box.
“Our Waste Management Team will be publicising the new scheme over the next few weeks with posters going up across the area and adverts will be running on Moray Firth Radio. The Team are also planning a number of public events and will be visiting schools to talk to pupils about recycling.”
“These new convenient collections from people’s homes should greatly reduce the number of visits that are needed to be made to Recycling Points and Centres, reducing car journeys and so further benefiting the environment.”
Householders will need to continue to use their local Recycling Points and Centres for glass bottles, jars and other recycling waste. A continually growing number of Recycling Points now have Clothes and Shoe Banks. Additionally Recycling Centres take a whole range of other items including electrical appliances, furniture, timber, garden waste and building rubble just to mention a few.
For more information about recycling in your area visit http://www.highland.gov.uk/recycle.htm, email: recycle@highland.gov.uk or telephone your local service point: Edderton area 01408 622644; East Ross, Mid Ross, Black Isle areas 01349 868527; Inverness area 01463 230634; and Nairn area 01667 458540.