EXPRESS REPORTER

A successful new recycling system has seen a reduction of almost 2,000 tonnes of household waste in Renfrewshire being sent to landfill.

From January to July 2019, 15,187.75 tonnes were disposed of compared with 17,163.44 in 2018 – a reduction of 11.5 per cent.

This coincided with a 42.6 per cent increase in the amount of food and garden waste recycled and almost 7,000 tonnes of blue and green bin recycling was diverted from landfill during this period.

This has enabled the council to post its highest ever recycling rate of 52.3 per cent in the year to date.

Councillor Cathy McEwan, convener of Renfrewshire Council’s Infrastructure, Land and Environment Policy Board, said: “We thank everyone for their efforts in using the new recycling system and we hope to see even more success in the future in raising our recycling rate and reducing the amount of waste that goes to landfill.

“It’s extremely important that we consider our environment and by taking the time to recycle you really are making a difference.

“We’ll support you however we can to recycle more, and more efficiently, so please get in touch or visit our website for more information on what should and should not go into your bins.”

The new collection service was introduced to more than 90,000 households in November last year, with homes given an additional recycling bin for plastics, cans and glass.

The service will be rolled out to areas of Erskine that needed a more tailored approach later this month.

Councillor McEwan added: “With a change of this size affecting almost every home in Renfrewshire, it was clear that there would be teething problems