Missed bin collections update

Residents tell us the the bins, due for collection in Poppleton last week, have now been emptied.

Meanwhile streets in Earswick, Heworth and Stockton on Forest were missed today.

It remains unclear when the York Council hopes to deal with issues arising out of inadequate vehicle capacity and unreliability.

Latest on missed bin collections

More streets in York have not had their refuse, recycling and garden waste collected today.

Areas affected included Dringhouses (Middlethorpe), Bishopthorpe, Acomb, Chapelfields, Tang Hall and Lockwood Street

Some residents have called for the service to be “outsourced” (privatised).

Until the Council is more candid about the causes of its current problems, then it is difficult to know whether different management arrangements would lead to a more reliable service.

Free recycling boxes offered for kerbside collections as part of a six month pilot

In a bid to encourage even more residents to recycle, householders in York will be offered up to three free replacement recycling boxes for their kerbside collections from next week.

City of York Council originally outlined plans to introduce a pilot scheme back in November, when the proposals were taken to a meeting for approval here

As well as providing an update on the York Community Recycling Fund and initiatives to reduce fly-tipping, approval was also given to undertake a pilot of the recycling boxes, using the £20k already allocated.

The pilot will start on Monday 11 March for up to six months and will offer up to three replacement recycle boxes to households in York.

To find out more information or to order the boxes visit: www.york.gov.uk/ReplacementBins

Garden waste collections will also start again from April, following a break during the winter season.

To find out when collections are due to take place visit: www.york.gov.uk/refuselookup

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Harewood Whin waste landfill site set to close

Entrance to Harewood Whin

York’s waste will no longer be sent the city’s landfill, which has closed after more than 30-years in operation.

The site at Harewood Whin, near Rufforth, opened in the 1980s and will now, over time, be transformed into a wildflower meadow, which hopes to encourage more fauna and flora to the area.

City of York Council and its operator Yorwaste will be marking this significant moment in York’s history this month.

Household waste collected in York and North Yorkshire is now being sent to Allerton Waste Recovery Park (AWRP) near Knaresborough.

The plant can process up to 320,000 tonnes of waste per year and is operated by Amey on behalf of North Yorkshire County Council and City of York Council. Diverting this waste away from landfill means AWRP can also use it to generate enough energy to power the equivalent of 40,000 homes in the area.  (more…)

Recycling facilities under pressure in York following festive break

Long queue today to get into Hazel Court recycling centre

1/4 mile long queues developed on the route into the Hazel Court recycling centre earlier today.

The post Christmas rush also resulted in  the paper banks at Acomb Car park overflowing. There is space in the adjacent bottle banks.

Fly tipping has steadily increased today. The issue has been taken up by Cllr Andrew Waller

We think that the Council needs to do more – perhaps using social media channels – to tell residents where there is spare recycling  bank capacity and when  the full banks in other locations will be emptied.

Fly tipping at Acomb Car park

 

Recycling – changes on their way?

The government has announced plans to try to increase the proportion of items which are recycled. They are promising a weekly collection of food waste although how expensive this might be, and what impact it may have on the operation of the North Yorkshire waste incinerator, remains to be explained.

Rightly the government is focusing on plastics. There is still  much more that can be done to take plastics out of the waste stream. One idea is to make sellers responsible for the recycling of packaging.

In York we have seen at least one step backwards in recent years as shops like Cartridge World have ceased trading. Most toner cartridge sales are now made over the internet with few companies offering a return service of single empty cartridges.

The York Councils “A to Z” of recycling lists only one outlet where empty cartridges can be taken for reuse (Office Outlet on Foss Island Road ) although there are other like Tesco on Tadcaster Road which are not publicised.

It really does little to help the environment if people must drive several miles to recycle relatively small items

The Council needs to update its web site and modernise signage at Hazel Court.

The plan to establish a Reuse and Salvage centre also needs to be revived. It was scrapped by the Labour controlled Council in 2011.

A more enthusiastic approach to using street scrap merchants might also result in less waste.

BBC stats indicating the percentage of plastics by type which are currently recycled