Refuse and recycling collections in Torfaen are due to return to normal this week after a backlog created by freezing weather was blitzed.
To catch up on missed collections running into tens of thousands, Torfaen Council picked up all waste last week.
Now it is reminding residents that, with the backlog about to be cleared, to only put out their green wheelie bin for kitchen and garden waste and their black recycling box on their normal collection day this week.
The local authority is also intensifying operations to clear litter, particularly any resulting from the backlog of refuse and recycling.
A Council spokesman said: “We would like to thank people for their support and apologise for any inconvenience caused.
“It has taken some time to collect everyone’s waste because the backlog meant our vehicles were picking up the equivalent of a month’s rubbish last week.
“Everything will be back to normal this week so please only put out your green wheelie bin for kitchen and garden waste and your black box for recycling.
“We also recognise that the backlog of refuse has generated litter which we will now begin to target.”
The worst snow and freezing weather for 30 years caused widespread disruption to collections since Christmas.
Limited collections were carried out during the freeze but these efforts were hampered by the prolonged, unprecedented conditions.
The spokesman said: “We could not send out vehicles in icy weather because the large vehicles would have been hard to manoeuvre, posing a risk to the crew, residents, cars and property.”
