BIN BAG CHECKS IF YOU DON’T RECYCLE
Kerbside action considered in bid to stop rubbish going to landfill
PEOPLE who don’t recycle in Swansea could start seeing council officers checking their black bin bags at the kerbside.
This would mostly involve checking the bags for weight and telltale signs of glass and cans clinking, rather than rummaging around in them.
The idea is to focus on the minority who still don’t recycle. ■
PEOPLE who don’t recycle in Swansea could start seeing council officers checking their black bin bags at the kerbside. This would mostly involve checking the bags for weight and telltale signs of glass and cans clinking, rather than rummaging around in them.
The idea is to focus on the minority who still don’t recycle, despite being offered a kerbside collection service for food waste, tins, paper, cardboard, hard plastic and glass.
Persistent non-recyclers would be written to, and face being issued with a fixed penalty notice – but council chiefs have stressed this would be a last resort. Cabinet will be asked to approve the new measures, which they said have public backing, at a meeting on December 20.
Councillor Mark Thomas, cabinet member for environment and infrastructure management, said: “We have operated kerbside recycling services for more than 15 years and the majority of households are taking part.
“Our ongoing surveys show that there are still residents who either refuse to recycle or do very little, opting only to use black bags.”
Swansea, like all authorities in Wales, has been recycling more and more, but in 2017-18 the level in Swansea dropped slightly.
The authority must hit a 64% recycling target next financial year but does not want to reduce the three-black bag fortnightly limit to two – or collect black bag waste less frequently – as this would impact on people who currently recycled.
Another problem with black bag waste is that it costs councils a lot of money to send it to landfill.
Reducing the amount of black bag waste at the kerbside in Swansea by 15% would save more than £300,000, and go a long way to ensuring the 64% recycling figure is met next year.
The council has introduced a number of measures to encourage recycling, including converting three civic amenity sites to recycling-only centres.
The report going before cabinet said of the black bag checks: “For the majority of cases, this can be done without the need to search bags, by using their weight, shapes, and a ‘clink test’ which identifies glass and tins/ cans.”
Waunarlwydd resident Pam Morgan, when told about the proposed new scheme, said: “I can see that something is necessary, and individual targeting is a more sensible idea.”
She reckoned that writing to serial non-recyclers was a better idea than “slapping labels” on black bags, as can happen currently.
“Perhaps the letter could say that your neighbours recycle, or 60% of the population recycles,” said Mrs Morgan. “As long as the letter is not too stroppy!”
Mrs Morgan said she had some sympathy for people living in flats, where storage space for recycling is limited, but that in general she felt recycling was simple. “It’s not hard, for goodness sakes,” she said. She also wanted supermarkets to cut down on plastic packaging.
Our ongoing surveys show that there are still residents who either refuse to recycle or do very little, opting only to use black bags - Councillor Mark Thomas