Public street recycling bins
Case reference FOI2019/00084
Published 12 June 2019
Request
1. Are the contents of public street recycling bins in your council area?
2. If the contents of these bins are recycled, please provide details of how the recyclables are identified and separated from general waste because it appears that the same waste bags are used for both.
3. If the contents of these bins are recycled, please provide details of what can be recycled from these bins (please also specify which types of plastics, if any).
4. If the contents of these bins are recycled, please provide details of where they are sent for sorting - which recycling centre or contractor.
5. If a contractor deals with public street recycling bins, please provide the contract that specifies the requirements for recycling the contents of these bins.
6. When were public street recycling bins first introduced?
7. Were the public street recycling bins introduced as part of a trial? If so, please provide the dates between which the contents of these bins have been treated as recyclables.
8. If the contents of these bins are not currently recycled, have the council communicated this with local residents?
9. Are there plans to begin recycling the contents of these bins again? If so, please provide details and a timeline.
Response
1. They are recycled, in cases of extreme contamination they may not be but these are very much the exception.
2. The bags are semi-transparent with beige used for refuse and a green bag used for recycling. The sacks are removed at the same time and are both taken to the transfer station where they are deposited in different areas (refuse and recycling).
3. We can recycle anything that we do from our kerbside collections. This includes glass bottles and jars; paper; card; cartons for food and drink; plastic bottles, carrier bags, pots, tubs and trays; aerosols; aluminium trays and foil; cans and tins.
4. The bags are sent, via the waste transfer station at Slyfield, to Biffa's Edmonton MRF.
5. We empty the bins and the content is managed under our broader recycling disposal contract.
6. These were introduced in 2017.
7. No, this was a progressive roll out across the borough as bins need replacing.
8. See Q1.
9. See Q1.
Documents
This is Guildford Council's response to a freedom of information (FOI) or environmental information regulations (EIR) request.
You can browse our other responses or make a new FOI request.