Blue bin recycling for almost 4,000 more households
BLUE bin household recycling will soon be rolled out to almost 4,000 additional Inverclyde properties in tenements and other hard to reach areas.
Inverclyde Council is expanding the service so that more people can now recycle at home.
The move is better for both people and planet, enabling even more residents to reduce waste and keep materials in high-value use.
It has been made possible with funding from the Scottish Government’s Recycling Improvement Fund, administered by Zero Waste Scotland, which empowers and supports local authorities across Scotland to make improvements to reuse and recycling infrastructure and services.
Blue bins will be delivered to properties in batches from early September with new fortnightly blue bin collections due to begin in early October.
Households that currently receive refuse sacks instead of a black bin will receive blue recycling sacks rather than a blue bin.
Properties involved in this roll-out will also change to a fortnightly black bin general waste collection, rather than the current weekly general waste collection, with their new blue bins being collected on alternating weeks instead in line with the rest of Inverclyde.
Households included in the expansion will receive letters in the coming weeks with more information about what it means for them and details are also available on the ‘recycling’ pages of the Inverclyde Council website.
Councillor Michael McCormick, Inverclyde Council’s convener of environment and regeneration, said: “This is a welcome expansion of the blue bin service that will make it easier than ever before for a significant number of households to recycle from the convenience of their own home.
“This extension to household recycling will help reduce waste and increase the volume of materials that can be used again, and ultimately reducing Inverclyde’s carbon footprint in line with the council’s net zero plans and ambitions.
“We now need people to get behind this rollout and recycle for Inverclyde and for the good of the environment.”
As well as reducing waste, the expansion will also help public finances by reducing costs to the council and taxpayers in the longer term.
David Gunn, Recycling Improvement Fund manager at Zero Waste Scotland, said: “A high-performing reuse and recycling sector has enormous potential to help Scotland develop the sustainable, resilient, and economically prosperous future we all want to see, and that makes investing in our resuse and recycling infrastructure a vital step towards achieving our circular economy objectives as a nation.
“The Recycling Improvement Fund empowers local authorities to do just that, recognising their expert knowledge of the wants and needs of their residents as well as their vital role in creating the conditions for a successful circular economy.
“At Zero Waste Scotland, we’re proud to be supporting local authorities across the nation to make significant improvements to their reuse and recycling services, influencing impactful, lasting behaviour change among citizens and supply chains and accelerating Scotland’s progress towards a cleaner, greener, circular economy.”
The blue bin is for dry mixed recyclables such as: paper; cardboard, including food and drinks cartons; steel and aluminium tins (ferrous and non-ferrous), including aerosol cans; plastic bottles; and food containers.
The council successfully bid for a grant of £95,000 from the Recycling Improvement Fund towards the estimated £112k total investment.
The fund was established to support local authorities with enhancing recycling services and infrastructure and will help pay for things like new bins and signage.
Details, including a frequently asked questions (FAQs) section, are available at www.inverclyde.gov.uk/recycling or via the link in the Related Links section of this page.
The council’s Recycling Helpline is also available on 01475 715901 for anyone needing further assistance.
The blue bin is for dry mixed recyclables such as: paper; cardboard, including food and drinks cartons; steel and aluminium tins (ferrous and non-ferrous), including aerosol cans; plastic bottles; and food containers.
About the Recycling Improvement Fund
Zero Waste Scotland administers the £70million Recycling Improvement Fund on behalf of the Scottish Government. Its aim is to accelerate progress towards Scotland’s ambitious waste and recycling targets and net zero commitment.
Inverclyde Council successfully bid for grant funding of £95,000 from the Fund towards the estimated £112k total investment.
To date the Recycling Improvement Fund has made 48 awards, to 27 local authorities, with a total value of more than £66million.
How do reuse and recycling benefit the economy?
Making the most of materials we already have in our economy and infrastructure:
- creates new opportunities for business in key sectors,
- supports domestic job creation in repair, reuse and remanufacturing, which in turn improves living standards and social mobility,
- supports development of better markets (prices) for reused materials, and,
- means improved economic resilience against future market shocks.
What’s more, innovation breeds innovation. Circularity helps drive further innovation and investment in evolving markets.
For individual businesses adopting circular models helps reduce costs, improve efficiency, and boost profitability.
More information about the circular economy is available on the Zero Waste Scotland website or via the link in the Other Websites section of this page.