City set to scrap extra charge for brown bins
£40 FEE WAIVED TO ENCOURAGE MORE RECYCLING IN THE CITY
THE £40 charge for buying an additional brown bin is set to be scrapped by Derby City Council.
Councillor Jerry Pearce, council cabinet member for Streetpride, is to be asked next week to approve abolishing the charge in order to encourage more recycling.
Currently, black bins for nonrecyclable waste, blue bins for dry recyclable waste and brown bins for compostable waste are supplied free of charge to all households.
But there is a £40 charge for anyone wishing to purchase an additional brown bin. A report going to Mr Pearce will also propose the introduction of a £25 charge for any additional black bins requested.
These are only provided in specific circumstances, such as where there are five or more people in the household or there are two children in nappies full-time, and there is regularly additional black bin waste.
Waste minimisation officers visit properties to confirm people are eligible and are taking steps to reduce their waste and recycle more.
The report says that “the current £40 charge for additional brown bins could provide a barrier to residents wanting to compost more of their waste” and the additional charge for black bins “would likely influence the number of containers being requested”.
It also says that at Rochdale Borough Council, a charge for the equivalent of black bins showed a demand for them reduced by 56% in the first three months and it halved over a year. Derby City Council is anticipating that introducing a charge for extra black bins and making additional brown bins free will reduce black bin requests by around 1,600 bins - roughly half the current 3,263 deliveries in 2020-21.
The report estimates that the 50% reduction in black bin demands will enable the council to reduce the number of containers purchased or held in stock which will saving £24,400.
Applying the £25 charge to the projected number of requested black bins would generate an income of £40.,800, leading to an overall benefit of £54,500 to the council.
If a bin is damaged as part of the emptying process or goes into the back of the refuse collection vehicle, these bins will continue to be provided free of charge.
The revised policy will not apply to paces where communal containers are in place such as flats, where there is a separate policy in place.
Mr Pearce said: “We believe that by removing the charge for additional brown bins it will encourage even more residents to recycle their garden and food waste through composting.
“We really want residents to view their black bin as a last resort for their waste. Instead, we’d like them to focus on reducing their waste altogether and recycling using kerbside collections.”
The cabinet member meeting will take place from 9am on Wednesday, October 6, and can be viewed on the council’s YouTube channel.