60% Recycling Rate Achieved By East Riding For August

East Riding residents recycled and composted 60 per cent of their waste in August, pushing the rate to the highest ever achieved in the area.

For four months in a row, East Riding’s residents have broken all previous records as they have taken advantage of East Riding of Yorkshire Council’s collection of food waste and cardboard in the brown composting bins.

The new collection service was rolled out between March and July across all 150,000 households in East Yorkshire and its success has steadily pushed up the monthly recycling rate.

The recycling rate for the five months from April to August was 56 per cent, compared with 44 per cent for the same five months of last year, proof of the success of the new service Councillor Symon Fraser, portfolio holder for environment, housing and planning, said:

“These results are fantastic. It means 4,460 tonnes of food waste, garden waste and cardboard was kept out of landfill, an increase of 1,870 tonnes on August of last year.

“We are expecting the good news to continue as we roll out the new collection of glass, further plastics and Tetra Paks in the blue recycling bins.”

From July through to January, the council is rolling out the collection of these additional materials and is exchanging the current smaller blue bins for larger, 240 litre bins to allow space for them alongside paper, plastic bottles, directories and cans.

To date, this new service has been rolled out across Holderness, and the Bridlington and Driffield areas. Currently, it is being rolled out across the Willerby, Cottingham, Hessle and Brough areas.

From mid-October it will be rolled out across the Beverley and surrounding villages; from mid-November to the Pocklington and Market Weighton areas; and from 12 December to the Goole, Howden and Gilberdyke areas.

For further information of about what can be put in the blue and brown bins, visit the council’s waste site on www.target45plus.org.uk.

The site also has details of the locations of the 10 household waste recycling sites and 140 local bring sites, mostly based on car parks and at supermarkets.