Wanstead’s new wheelie bins have been delivered to those houses which have been selected to take part in the Redbridge-wide trial service, heralding an end to years of black bag collections, but also raising fears of moves towards fortnightly collections.
Seven thousands homes across the borough are taking part in the scheme, collections for which begin on Monday. The council says it is hoping to reduce the cost of black bag collection – which runs at £18m a year.
The 180-litre bins will suit some houses more than others – those with drives and/or front gardens will cope with them better than those without either, and it’s not clear how the council expects these households to avoid obstructing the pavement.
It is hoped that the wheelie bins will help contribute to increasing recycling levels and also help cut businesses using domestic collection for their waste, though it is not clear what difference wheelie bins will actually make in either case.
It is true, though, that Redbridge has a big task in increasing its recycling levels – currently it recycles, reuses or composts just 24.9% of household waste, putting it at 331st place out of 345 councils in England. Bexley is the best-performing London borough, with 54.1%. (Source. )
Councillor John Howard, Redbridge cabinet member for Civic Pride, said:
“A key aim of the scheme is to keep our streets cleaner – containing rubbish in a wheelie bin will prevent animals and birds ripping open bags and making a mess in our streets, which is unpleasant for everyone and costly to clean up. Using wheelie bins for rubbish will also help keep people’s front gardens clean.
We’re testing the scheme to make sure that the bins reduce refuse tonnages and work for householders as intended, and we’re eager to hear residents’ views.”
