Friday, March 12, 2010

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New waste arrangements from 8th June 2009

On 3 March, SODC held an information meeting at SODC on the new waste collection system to be introduced from 8 June of this year.
Key points are:

• The new contract (shared between SODC and VoWHDC) will give both cost savings and service improvements over the existing arrangements, even after deducting the cost of the new waste bins (£100 per household).
• By June, we will all be issued with three new waste bins
  - One for recycleables (now including glass and a wide range of plastics)
  - One for kitchen waste (to keep organic material out of landfill)
  - One for non-recyclables
  
• Recycled material will first be separated and processed locally, with some more difficult items sent to a regional depot in the West midlands
• Kitchen waste will be processed in ‘digestors’ to produce methane gas which will generate electricity, with the residue going to fertiliser use. Three facilities will be build in South Oxfordshire and all will be commissioned within the next 2 years.
• The reduced amount of non-recyclable material will go to landfill.
• The bins are fairly large and on wheels. Collections will be fortnightly for recycles and landfill (alternating weeks), with kitchen waste collected weekly. The existing ‘brown-bin’ garden waste scheme will continue as at present for those who subscribe to it.
• For Didcot and the Hagbournes, the collections days will stay the same as at present. The contractor has a new fleet of vehicles including smaller ones that can access narrow roads and tracks.
• One significant change is that the bins will be collected from just inside the ‘curtilage’ of the property – they should not in general be put on the road-side because of fears of obstruction.
  - This aspect generated a lot of discussion, since clearly there are some properties where this is not easy.
  - SODC will survey those areas where it is a problem
  - Where bins are not practical, there are provisions for use of bags instead, but this must be agreed with the council first
  - For those who cannot easily move the bins, collection from the house will be possible
  - Extra bins may be available for those households which unavoidably generate large amounts of waste.
  - However, only the special bins will be collected (since they are handled automatically) – additional bags put out with the bins will not be collected.
• The bins will be fitted with a microchip and weighed as they are emptied. This is intended to help produce overall statistics and will not be used to monitor individual behaviour.
• There are clearly some grey areas expecially over where to leave the bins for emptying
  - But with common sense and liaison with the council, we should be able to make it work.
• Deliver of bins will start at the end of this month, but they cannot be used until the new contract start in June.
• From June, provision will be made to collect unwanted green boxes, but disposal of other dustbins is the resposibility of the householder
• Full information will be provided when the bins are delivered, and there is a list of questions and answers on the internet at http://www.southoxon.gov.uk/ccm/navigation/environment/recycling--rubbish-and-waste/
• Useful documents
  - Introductory leadflet - new waste services
  - Public holiday waste collection days
  - Collection day changes