Yesterday (6 July 2022), New Forest District Council’s Cabinet recommended that proposed changes to their recycling and rubbish service, and plans to reduce waste in the district, are approved at a full Council meeting on 11 July 2022.
To plan for a new service, changes are not expected to take place until 2024 onwards.
Cllr Edward Heron, Leader of the Council, said, “It’s not a question of if we should change, we must now change by reducing our impact on the environment, managing waste in a more sustainable way and improving our frontline service.
We will do this by firstly, helping our residents to reduce and reuse more materials, and secondly, by recycling more materials at the kerbside.”
The government’s new Environment Act means all councils in England will need to collect food waste separately.
And residents all over the country will be able to recycle the same materials at the kerbside.
Hampshire County Council are planning a new facility which will allow NFDC to collect foil and extra plastics for recycling.
Cllr Steve Davies, Portfolio Holder for Environment and Coastal Services, said, “Our recycling rates are significantly below the national average, at 34%.
The current national target for 2025 is 55%. We hope to meet and exceed this to become one of the best performing councils in England.
“It isn’t just about recycling rates; our service must change to meet new legislation such as the introduction of a weekly food waste collection.
“We must also improve the cleanliness of our streets and prevent litter from split sacks harming wildlife, and protect our operatives, who are currently required to pick up thousands of sacks per day.
And our service must be compatible with the disposal infrastructure that will be provided by Hampshire County Council in the future.
“We all accepted change when supermarkets successfully removed carrier bags from circulation; I hope that Members will agree with me that the New Forest, should now join the rest of Hampshire and surrounding authorities to take this opportunity to move away from single use plastic sacks.
“To develop our plans, we have looked at the top performing councils in England and worked with industry experts to establish the best service for the New Forest.
We have listened to the feedback we have had from residents, and we know there may be some circumstances where we will need to vary our new service.
We will work with residents between now and the start of the new collection service in 2024.”
As well as changes to the council’s recycling and rubbish services, NFDC’s new waste strategy includes an additional waste reduction plan.
There will be an increased focus on communications and education, to support residents with service changes, and to provide information and resources to prevent waste and reduce environmental impact.
The new waste strategy will go to NFDC’s full Council on Monday 11 July for approval.
Residents can read the new waste strategy at newforest.gov.uk/wastestrategy or request a print version by contacting the council’s customer services.