Think before you ‘green bin’ it
We are launching a new campaign to help residents understand what should go in their green recycling bin.
Why has this campaign been launched?
The campaign will see waste advisors checking the contents of the green bins to help residents understand what should, or should not be included. The campaign is aimed at addressing Kirklees’ significantly low recycling rate which, at 27%, falls well below the national average of 45%.
A council officer said:
We have got to create change to impact our recycling rates and we must take action now. Kirklees Council is committed to providing a clean green, sustainable environment for our community but we can’t do it alone – to make a difference we need our residents’ help.
Over the next four months we will be out and about talking to households and providing help and advice. I am very hopeful that our new approach to recycling will be met with positivity – especially because our communities are very conscious about the irreversible effects of our carbon footprint. So I am asking every household to stop and check before putting anything in a green bin that they are not sure can go in it.
What will recycling and waste advisors do?
Recycling and waste advisors will be physically checking every green bin in Kirklees to help residents’ understand what should be in the bins. The campaign follows a previous pilot of two bin collection rounds where monitoring saw a 20% increase to accepted vehicle loads at the waste transfer station.
Why is this happening?
Some households are unsure of what can and cannot go in a green bin so this exercise will help to clear up any misunderstandings. Items such as soiled nappies, food waste, glass and black bin liners should never be placed in a green bin.
What if I get a yellow sticker on my green bin?
A yellow sticker will be placed on bins containing the wrong items. Advisors will then contact households before the next scheduled bin collection to explain why a sticker was given and what needs to happen to address this.
Advisors, along with ward councillors, will be out and about checking bins and talking to residents in South Kirklees until 25 May – following this, they will then be in North Kirklees from 27 May up to 26 July.
More information
Information about correct use of green bins can be found here on our website.
Really disgusted with Kirklees, moved mile down the road and changed from Bradford council to Kirklees. Bradford took anything with a recycle symbol, all recyclable plastics, all glass, paper, card, tins, foil, cans etc so much so that we had 2 large recycling bins which were emptied fortnightly and the general waste bin was only ever emptied once a month. We always washed everything out so it was clean and no food contamination.
I’m astounded in this day and age at how little Kirklees allows in their recycle bins – come on Kirklees it’s 2019
Why doesn’t Kirklees take all waste with a recycle symbol
It means that what you can’t recycle in a more economically sound way (meaning sorting worthy recycling plastics from other non-valuable for means of being viable in a monetary way). It has nothing to do with the environment. SIMPLY MONEY.
Tell me if I’m wrong, or sue me.
Exactly right Ian. Consumption is definitely the key to tacking waste of food, energy and water in any household, and that is so important.
However, the Council is creating a huge environmental problem with not collecting glass as I see my neighbours throwing this valuable and space-taking form into grey bins all over my street.
A lot of my neighbours simply don’t have a car or the ability to carry heavy glass to a long-distance bottle-bank. The result is that it ends up in the grey bin.
Not everything can be recycled Peter, but can, must be.
WHY DO YOU NOT COLLECT GLASS?
Kirklees are one of the worst in the whole UK for recycling, and it’s not because we don’t try as households, it’s because THE FACILITIES ARE NOT AVAILABLE.
Hear hear! Cut consumption, and make sure the supermarkets know that we don’t need all this plastic wrapped around our non-perishable goods.
Grey waste will be burnt or land-filled. Either way, it’s environmentally unsound.
When the bin is full? Are you saying that they will check EVERY SINGLE bin on a street?
It’s because the Council don’t want to spend money on hand-separating plastic.
A simple point made very clear (like the clear glass the council don’t collect)
Hi Tim, Our current contract limits us to only plastic bottles. We agree that this needs to change and are currently looking to improve this in the future. Grey bin waste does not go to landfill – We produce energy by processing it at our Energy from Waste (EfW) facility in Huddersfield. This means that renewable energy is produced from grey bin waste to help power homes in England. For clarity – recycling from the green bin is sent to reprocessing markets to make new products.
Recycling is progress but with the vast use in energy used and transportation or materials to be recycled it is still damaging to the environment. Cutting consumption is the key.
One thing you could do is publicise the fact that you can recycle plastic bottles but not the tops – hardly anyone knows that and I only found out last year at one of those ‘meet the leaders’ events. Just putting it on the website won’t get the message out.
Recycling comprehensively is a step forward but is in itself damaging to the environment in transportation and energy used to recycle. The only way to environmentally deal with waste especially plastics is to cut consumption and stop using them.
Going strictly by what is allowed in a green bin leaves the green bin under-utilised and probably, the grey bin collection every two weeks inadequate for the average family. It hurts to put plastic in the grey bin. For example, what happens if you put a clean yoghurt pot in the green bin? Also, I heard a previous council leader state that we don’t send waste to landfill now. Is that true?
Hi, yes that’s correct, it will be checked on collection
How will they be able to physically check a bin if it its on your property?
You mean they will inspect the bin when it is put out for collection?
How will this work in practice? Will an advisor knock on your door and ask to enter your property to go through your Green Bin?
Or will they simply check it on collection?
Sadly I think stopping the doorstep glass recycling scheme hasn’t helped. People who had got used to recycling their glass in this way are now putting their glass in the grey bin instead of taking it to a bottle bank – my neighbour is one of these people… and he seems to produce a lot of empty beer bottles! I also think it doesn’t help that plastic recycling is so complicated. If you can recycle any plastic (black food trays included) at Sainsbury’s, why can it be the same in the green bins or at council tips? It has to be made as easy as possible for the majority of people to get on board.
whilst I applaud the action proposed I would like to point out that all items can be recycled and that it is matter of choice to restrict what will be recycled .
How will you tackle speaking to residents in apartment buildings.
Take glass
The re-cycling facilities for Huddersfield households is woeful compared to other councils. No separate paper or plastic green bins, no food waste bins and most ridiculous of all, NO GLASS recycling AT ALL.
If you don’t have a car, you can’t take glass to one of the very few and distant bottle banks around that are often full and over-flowing. Therefore it goes straight into the grey bin and into landfill. Even if you have a car, how environmentally friendly is burning fuel to go and recycle your accumulated glass? Absolutely crazy, when one lorry could take a whole streets glass!
Time to wake up and sort this out as it is simply not acceptable.