DIRTY nappies, food waste and plastic are among the items people have been putting in their blue recycling bins - currently supposed to contain nothing but cardboard.
The council is changing the rules to allow a mixture of cardboard and paper in the blue bin, which will do away with the need for the separate white sack for paper. But this change does not come into effect until August, it was confirmed this week.
Putting the wrong waste in the wrong bins costs the council money, and can result in recyclable material ending up in landfill, which is why the council wants to cut down on bin contamination - items being placed in the wrong bins.
Two weeks ago the council did a test sample of blue bin waste and of 13 tonnes analysed, only 84 per cent of it was cardboard. It should have been 100 per cent.
Of the 16 per cent that did not belong in the bin, seven per cent was general waste which should have gone in the grey bin, including dirty nappies and food waste, while one per cent was plastic.
The remaining eight per cent was paper and magazines, which currently should not be in the blue bin, but will be permitted after August.
“Contamination is a real issue for us,” said Dale Sparks, the council’s head of commercial support services. “The target is to keep contamination under two per cent, but we did a test sample of the blue bin, and the results were quite alarming.
“At the moment the blue bin should be 100 per cent cardboard. But there was general waste, nappies and all sorts in there.
“We are moving towards co-mingling paper and cardboard. It shouldn’t be in there yet, but we weren’t too surprised to find paper and magazines in there. But not food waste and nappies.”
The council is switching to a new contractor to deal with cardboard which has paper mills in the UK and is prepared to take a mixture of cardboard and paper, but it must not be contaminated with plastic and food waste.
Paper still needs to be put in the white sack until the end of July, but can be placed in the blue bin from the first collection of August.
What are you really supposed to put in your recycling bins? See our guide here.
