Plans that will help reduce the amount of household waste sent to landfill are set to be introduced in Swansea this October.
The introduction of alternate weekly collections of refuse and recycling is being launched to address the change in habits of residents who now recycle more of their household waste.
On a rolling two-week rota it will mean that during the first week, household rubbish in black bags, plastics and kitchen waste will be collected.
Then on the second week, kitchen waste and other recyclables like glass, cans, paper and cardboard and green waste in their containers will be collected.
The first phase of the changes will commence in October and will be rolled out to residents who have their kerbisde collection on either a Thursday or a Friday.
The second phase will take place in April 2011 and be rolled out to the rest of Swansea, including those who have kerbside collections on Monday to Wednesday.
To make the transition easier for residents, the different weekly collections will be colour coded pink or green. And residents will be given a handy fridge magnet which tells them which week is which.
John Hague, Cabinet Member for the Environment in Swansea Council said, “We want residents to have the opportunity to do their bit for Swansea and deal with their own domestic waste in a more responsible manner.
“The kitchen waste recycling service is available for residents to dispose of food waste every week. We even provide special bins instead of food being thrown into black bin bags.”
Councils in Wales could be left with huge tax bills to pay if more is not done to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill sites. And Swansea is following other Councils in the UK in introducing measures that will help improve the local environment and keep landfill tax as low as possible.
He said: “For every tonne of waste we send to landfill above our WAG landfill allowances we have to pay £200 in fines. Over the coming years the landfill allowance will reduce and landfill tax will increase, sending the costs to council taxpayers soaring if we do not change.
“So far the people of Swansea have done a great job in achieving recycling rates of almost 40 percent. But we can’t stand still; we need to do better if we are to avoid massive costs in future years. Doing nothing is not an option.
“This approach has been successfully introduced by around 200 other councils in the UK who have developed segregated waste collections. We have learned from their experiences, which is why we must collect food related waste weekly.
Residents can find out all about the changes to kerbside collections by calling 01792 635600 or visitiing www.swansea.gov.uk/recycling.
