Towards Zero Waste – Raising wareness on how the councils new waste collection service will work in your area.
From April 12th householders in parts of West Dunbartonshire will see an increase in the frequency of the collection of their recycling bins. It is estimated that once the scheme is fully implemented, 6000 extra tonnes of waste could be recycled per year which will help the Council avoid paying millions of pounds in Landfill Tax charges.
Households with blue, brown and green or grey wheeled bins in Dumbarton, Renton, Vale of Leven, Bonhill, Balloch and Gartocharn will be receiving a new waste collection service from this date which will see a priority given to recycling. Under the new scheme, instead of monthly blue and brown bin collections, recyclable waste and non-recyclable waste will be collected on alternate weeks. Changes also include the introduction of a food waste recycling scheme using kitchen caddies to collect the food waste which can then be placed in brown bins alongside garden waste. The range of materials that can be recycled in blue bins is also increasing to include drinks cartons such as Tetrapak.
A recycling guide will be delivered to all affected homes before the new service starts, with full details of how and what to recycle along with any revised collection dates.
Towards Zero Waste - Battery Recycling
As of 1st February 2010 supermarkets in West Dunbartonshire and shops that sell batteries will have collection bins for used batteries. Look out for the Be Positive signs in shop windows and in stores to find these collection areas. West Dunbartonshire Council is working in partnership with Valpak to enable residents to recycle their household batteries. There is now a small container sited at each Household Waste Recycling Centre at Dalmoak, Dumbarton, Ferry Road, Old Kilpatrick and Stanford Street, Clydebank, where residents can deposit all sizes of household batteries. All batteries deposited for recycling should still be in a sealed, undamaged condition. The materials contained in batteries are very valuable and when you recycle your household batteries these materials are recovered and used to make new batteries and other metal products.
The Waste Batteries Regulations (2009) mean that most businesses and shops that supply batteries now have to offer collection points for them - any retailer supplying more than one pack of four AA batteries a day will have to comply. Recycling your batteries will be a welcome boost for the environment. It can help save some of the earth’s natural resources and save on CO2 emissions by reducing the need to use new materials.
For more information on battery recycling please visit www.wasteawarescotland.org.uk/html/recycleBatteries.asp.
For further information on West Dunbartonshire Council’s recycling services please visit Waste Services or call the Recycling Helpline on 0845 111 0050.
Zero Waste – Improving Recycling Services
In November 2009, West Dunbartonshire Council approved the implementation of a new alternate weekly collection service for all low level homes in the West Dunbartonshire area. This new service will mean that blue bins will have additional dry recyclable material added and be collected on a fortnightly frequency, brown bins will have food waste added and be collected on a fortnightly frequency and residual (landfill) waste will be collected on a fortnightly frequency - this should permit householders to recycle up to 50% of their waste.
This new service will be rolled out from April 2010 in the Dumbarton and Vale of Leven areas and from December 2010 in the Clydebank area. Please watch out for householder guidance about the new service which will be supplied to all participating households in advance of the start date, as well as ‘walk in’ guidance events, which will be widely publicised in each area prior to implementation. In the meantime please visit the Alternate Weekly Collection Service web page for further information.
Working Toward Zero Waste - Recycling Photographic Competition
A new photo competition to help boost recycling activity in the West Dunbartonshire area is offering £10,000 worth of prizes for the best pictures of wildlife and people looking after their local environment and is running until February 2010.
The Love Where You Live photo competition is sponsored by not for profit recycling organisation Alupro to celebrate the quarter of a million trees they have grown in the UK and Africa because more and more people recycle their aluminium drinks cans and foil - a tree for every tonne recycled.
The competition encourages amateur photographers to take pictures which will inspire visitors to a special exhibition next April 2010 to look with fresh eyes at their surroundings, as we face up to climate change, and to do what they can to look after it.
The £10,000 prize pot covers six areas in the United Kingdom including Scotland, including prizes for schools and under 18s, with a top award of £3,750. There are two prize categories: ‘local landscape and wildlife’ and ‘people having an impact on where we live’.
Full details from www.lovewhereyoulive.org.uk. The competition is open to amateur photographers only.
Recycling campaign used by West Dunbartonshire Council wins
prestigious global environment award
A new innovative branding concept currently being used to promote recycling across West Dunbartonshire has received global praise and recognition from a leading global environment body.
The new flexible campaign from Waste Aware Scotland – which has already been adopted by 27 Scottish local authorities including West Dunbartonshire – was awarded the International Solid Waste Association’s (ISWA) prestigious Communication Award for being an ``exemplar’’ of how best to promote recycling to the public. The award was presented to Waste Aware Scotland by Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead during the official opening of Keep Scotland Beautiful’s (KSB) new office in Stirling. The campaign is also set for recognition at the ISWA World Congress next month in Lisbon.
The new campaign is designed to increase recycling rates across West Dunbartonshire by making the practice easier for local people through clearly explaining the variety of products that can be recycled and how to do so. The move is viewed as a key part of helping achieve the wider vision of a Zero Waste Scotland.
As part of the new approach, promotional materials will feature images of the recyclable products – e.g: brand name milk cartons, cereal boxes, newspapers and catalogues, alongside an image of the recycling container into which they should be placed. The materials will also feature easily understood strap lines such as: Everything here…can go in here…
The brand can also be easily adapted by the council to include all recyclate materials and collection systems including compostable garden waste; household furniture; textiles; plastic bottles and glass – again allowing the public to easily identify the range of recyclable products and moreover, where they should be placed. It can also be used for different sectors including the likes of schools and businesses.
Commenting on the new approach Councillor William Hendrie, Spokesperson for Housing, Environment and Economic Development said ‘The new branding will make it even easier for West Dunbartonshire residents to recycle their waste as it features everyday items that are easy to recognize. It will therefore help West Dunbartonshire Council towards reaching the Scottish Governments Zero Waste challenges.’
Dr Nicki Souter, Waste Aware Scotland added: “The new branding approach is an excellent example of Scotland leading the way in devising innovative and creative ways of engaging the public with the wider recycling effort.
“With over 80 per cent of the Scottish public now recycling in some way, the challenge is to widen the amount of materials people recycle and our new branding will help by clearly identifying which products can be recycled and what’s more, how to do it. The new brand approach marks a huge step forward in normalising recycling behaviour across Scotland.’’
Working Towards Zero Waste – Reducing Your Waste
West Dunbartonshire Council are urging employees and residents to make small changes to the way they manage their food to help reduce waste sent to landfill, reduce carbon emissions and save themselves money.
In the most detailed study of its kind, a new report, The Food We Waste in Scotland, published by WRAP Scotland, has highlighted that £1 billion of food is needlessly thrown away by Scottish households each year which equates to over 1.7 million tonnes of carbon dioxide being emitted into the atmosphere each year.
The report reveals that Scottish households throw out 570,000 tonnes of food and drink each year, most of which could have been avoided if it had been planned, stored or prepared better. This is a loss to the average household of £430 every year. For families with children it is higher at £550 – a significant chunk of the family budget.
Based on a survey across Scotland, the most common items thrown away were milk (31,000 tonnes), sliced bread (25,000 tonnes), fizzy drinks (23,000 tonnes), potatoes (19,000 tonnes) and ready meals or snacks (14,000 tonnes). In addition, 96,000 tonnes of fresh fruit and vegetables were binned. If these had been eaten, they could have contributed 1 billion portions of our recommended 5-a-day intake. Half of the good food thrown out for council collection was whole and uneaten, with one in seven items still in their packaging.
Dr Nicki Souter, Waste Aware Scotland Campaign Manager, added: “This report being so detailed truly shows the public how much food is currently wasted in Scotland. The reasons we waste are food are that we cook or prepare too much or we buy things and then don’t use them in time.
There are many small changes householders can make to the way they manage their food, which can dramatically reduce their food waste and put that money back in their pocket, for example, planning food shopping and storing food correctly. The Love Food Hate Waste website: www.wasteawarelovefood.org.uk offers a host of hints, tips and simple recipes to enable people to make the most of the food they buy.” The full report can be found at www.wrap.org.uk.
Working Towards Zero Waste – Recycling Your Waste
WEST DUNBARTONSHIRE COUNCIL ASKS CARTON FANS: HOW DO YOU SQUASH YOURS?
West Dunbartonshire Council has joined forces with carton-maker Tetra Pak to launch a competition to get residents to squash their used cartons before recycling them.
To celebrate that residents have embraced carton recycling in West Dunbartonshire and to minimise the chances of the collection bins overflowing, plus keeping collection trucks off the road, the Council and Tetra Pak are challenging residents to come up with the most original way to squash their empty cartons in the ‘How do you squash yours?’ competition. West Dunbartonshire Council and Tetra Pak are therefore challenging residents to film their most imaginative ways of flattening their cartons and post their clips on www.howdoyousquashyours.co.uk. The winning entrant – voted for by the public later this year – can choose either the chance of a lifetime place on an exciting international environmental adventure such as wildlife conservation in South Africa or volunteering with Turtles in Panama, or an Eco TV, 50 hot DVDs and a supply of wine or smoothies in Tetra Pak cartons.
West Dunbartonshire’s carton recycling banks are situated at:
Dalmoak Recycling Centre, Dumbarton
Ferry Rd Recycling Centre, Old Kilpatrick
Stanford St Recycling Centre, Clydebank
Bank St, Alexandria
St James Retail Park, Dumbarton
For more information on this and other ways to recycle visit www.wdcweb.info/environment/waste-services or call 0845 111 0050.
'Love Food Hate Waste' Campaign
In an effort to reduce the food waste we throw away the Scottish Waste Aware Group and West Dunbartonshire Council are raising awareness of the environmental and economic impacts of food waste.
The latest phase of the Love Food Hate Waste campaign is encouraging Scotland’s householders to reduce food waste by buying seasonal and locally produced orchard fruits. The campaign also encourages people to share their hints and tips on reducing food waste by using an interactive website with food waste diaries and a forum for exchanging ideas on how to avoid wasting the food they buy. There is also help from chefs and food champions on how to plan and prepare food, information on storing and portioning and recipe ideas for leftovers.
The campaign is being supported by celebrity chefs such as Nick Nairn and food writers such as Martin Wishart and is also designed to link into other Scottish food related campaigns such as the Healthy Living Campaign, Scottish Food in Season and the Food Standards Agency. In a recent survey it was found that food waste accounted for almost a fifth (19%) of our domestic waste. The research found that cooked food is more likely to be thrown away than raw ingredients, and that fresh fruit and vegetables are the most common uncooked food to be discarded followed by bread and cakes.
The main reasons given in the survey for disposing of food were:
- Buying more than we need - unplanned shopping
- Storage - fridges are often too warm
- Not eating short shelf life items before their use by date
- Children's food likes and dislikes
- Informal or unplanned eating patterns leading to food bought that is not needed
For more information on preventing food waste visit the Food Waste Prevention page. To find out how to plan and prepare food, information on storing and portioning, recipe ideas for leftovers and more about the campaign visit the Love Food Hate Waste web page.
For more information on any waste prevention or recycling issues visit the Waste Services web page or call 0845 111 0050.
Fluorescent Tubes can now be recycled at West Dunbartonshire Councils three Household Waste Recycling Centres:
Fluorescent Tubes can be harmful to the environment. You should not dispose of fluorescent tubes, sodium lamps and energy saving bulbs and lighting in landfill. Normal bulbs can be disposed of straight into your landfill bin. Mercury is also a valuable natural resource and therefore recoering it and other materials from the tubes for reuse is an environmentally friendly option. Straight fluorescent lamps, sodium lamps and energy saving bulbs can be recycled at Dalmoak, Ferry Road and Stanford Street.
Visit the Household Waste Recycling Centres web page for details of the Household Waste Recycling Centre opening times.
Kerbside Recycling Campaign Survey
West Dunbartonshire Council in partnership with the Scottish Waste Aware Group (SWAG), recently carried out a survey to assess resident’s attitudes to the council’s kerbside recycling service. The full survey report details the findings of a door to door survey which was carried out among West Dunbartonshire householders to establish how satisfied they are with the service and if they thought it should be changed in any way.
The main findings of the survey reported that 96% of West Dunbartonshire residents who qualify for the wheeled bin recycling services, have a blue bin and 93% have a brown bin available. The survey also suggested that 90% of blue wheeled bin users and 92% of brown wheeled bin users rate the service overall as very good or good. Whilst 84% of residents who use the blue box and bag service also rated their service overall as good or very good.
While some wheeled bin recycling service users were in favour of more frequent collections, more than 60% of the residents questioned, stated they would use a separate recycling container for glass bottles and jars, were they to be provided with one by the council.
The Council is currently performing above the 30% recycling target set for 2008 the previous Scottish Executive and will study the findings of the survey to develop future plans to meet the new challenging recycling targets announced recently by the Scottish Government.
If you would like further information, please download the full Kerbside Recycling Campaign Survey. (379KB .pdf document)
Recycling Poster
West Dunbartonshire Council has developed a downloadable recycling poster for all households in the area. The poster can be downloaded and used by all households which have blue bins, blue bags or blue boxes and gives hints on what can be recycled in the containers. It has been sustainably developed to reduce the issues relating to transport and delivery when guides, leaflets and flyers are delivered to households.
This is only one of the ways the Council is helping residents get to know what to recycle in their recycling containers. For further information on recycling please contact 0845 111 0500 or download the recycling poster. (109KB .pdf document)
Reduce Unwanted Direct Mail
Some residents of West Dunbartonshire may wish to reduce the amount of unwanted direct mail they receive by registering with a free service to remove their name from mailing lists in the UK.
The Mailing Preference Services (MPS) is a free service which has been operating for over 20 years to enable consumers to have their individual names and home addresses removed for UK mailing lists. If you would like to remove your name from mailing lists register with the Mailing Preference Service or by calling their information line on telephone number 0845 703 4599.
Residents can also opt out of the Royal Mail’s Door to Door Service. To do this you can call the Royal Mail on 08457 950 950 (Choose option 1 for business customers, then option 3, then option 1 then finally option 3) or visit the Royal Mail website.
The Scottish Waste Aware Group has also launched a campaign to reduce unwanted mail and to raise awareness of the impact of unwanted mail on the environment. Reducing the amount of unwanted mail delivered to Scottish households is a key action of the Scottish Government's Household Waste Prevention Action Plan. For more information on the campaign visit the Waste Aware Unwanted Mail website.
Recycle your juice cartons
West Dunbartonshire Council is working in partnership with two organisations to roll out a pilot scheme for the recycling of drink and food cartons at five bring sites in the area.
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Containers for collection of the cartons will be placed at the following locations:
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Dalmoak Household Waste Recycling Centre, Renton Rd, Dumbarton
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Ferry Road Household Waste Recycling Centre, Ferry Rd, Old Kilpatrick
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Stanford Street Recycling Centre, Stanford St, Clydebank
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Bank St, Alexandria
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Asda Car Park, St James Retail Park, Dumbarton
All of the collection containers carry information giving examples of the type of container which can be recycled but generally they will accept all paper based liquid food and drink cartons such as those used for milk or fruit juice. West Dunbartonshire Council would encourage residents to recycle as many of their cartons as possible as this will help to prevent even more of our household waste from going to landfill.
For further information on this scheme or any other aspect of recycling please contact the Waste Aware Team on 0845 111 0050.
For more information on carton recycling please visit:
Waste Aware Scotland
Sort-it Reduce Reuse & Recycle
ACEUK
Have Fun With Recycling
With the summer holidays upon us, parents in West Dunbartonshire could be looking for fun ways of keeping children entertained.
Re-using old packaging and household objects to make new toys and decorations is a fun way of keeping the kids busy for hours, without breaking the bank – and it’s a great way of showing people that there are lots of things they can re-use and recycle rather than throwing in the bin!
Milk and juice cartons are particularly versatile, and with a bit of imagination they can be made into all sorts of things, from ten pin bowls to puppets and mobiles. Carton manufacturer, Tetra Pak, has created a fun factsheet to give parents a few ideas, and show how easy it is to get creative with cartons before recycling them.
If you are planning activity, there may be a number of ways you can use this factsheet - Residents can download a copy of the factsheet from the Tetra Pak website at www.tetrapakrecycling.co.uk/cartonart.
Carpets can now be reused!
Reuse involves the multiple use of an item in its original form, for its original purpose or for an alternative, with or without reconditioning. In many cases waste that cannot be prevented can be reused instead of buying new products. For example, you can now recycle carpets at Spruce Carpets.
Carpets can be donated to Spruce Carpets, who will refurbish them and redistribute to residents in need of affordable flooring. Spruce Carpets can be contacted by telephone on 0141 425 1555 or visit their website at www.sprucecarpets.org.uk/.
