Staff at Torfaen council are gearing up for the biggest change to the county borough’s waste and recycling collection in 10 years.
Residents at more than 16,000 homes will be affected by changes to their collection days that come into affect from Monday, September 20.
The council say the changes will lead towards a more sustainable, efficient and cost effective waste collection service.
The changes, that will save the council £40,000 a year, will result in more residents getting their refuse and recycling collected on the same day.
Over the last five years there has been a significant change in the way that Torfaen manages its waste.
The council has promoted its recycling activities through a number of initiatives including the introduction of the Twin Bin scheme and weekly kerbside recycling.
This has resulted in an increased recycling rate for Torfaen.
The council now recycles an impressive 43% of its waste. In 2004/2005 only 15% of waste was recycled.
However, further improvements are needed to reach future targets set by the Welsh Assembly including the goal of recycling 70% of the borough’s waste by 2025.
The current collection routes were originally set out when the council operated a weekly refuse collection service – they have remained unchanged for 10 years.
“The introduction of recycling and Twin Bin systems coupled with an increase in housing development has driven the council to review the refuse and recycling collection rounds,” said Councillor John Cunningham, Executive Member for Neighbourhood Services.
“We are writing directly to inform the residents who will be affected by these changes.
“We would ask residents to continue to support us in our journey towards a cleaner and greener Torfaen.”
For more information on the collection changes call 01495 766608 or visit www.torfaen.gov.uk/waste
