New Recycling Service Rollout Continues in East and North Dorset

The comprehensive, cost cutting recycling service that has been introduced to Christchurch and parts of East Dorset is due to expand its coverage this year to include areas in North Dorset.

The new 'Recycle for Dorset' service has proved successful where it has been launched and the roll out will be continuing this Spring.

40,000 households are due to receive a leaflet detailling the new service before the end of January. The areas to be targetted include: Alderholt, Corfe Mullen, Cranborne, Holt, Sixpenny Handley, Sturminster Marshall, Wimborne St. Giles and surrounding villages.

The Dorset Waste Partnership (DWP) is encouraging recipients to read the information as they may need to take action before the end of February.

Cllr Mrs Hilary Cox, Chair of the DWP Joint Committee, said:

"The new service is clean, easy-to-use and enables people to recycle more at home, including plastic pots, tubs and trays. While most households should have no problems using the new service, there will be genuine reasons why the standard containers will not be suitable for everyone and we may be able to agree suitable alternatives."

The New Service

For most households, the standard 'recycle for Dorset' service will consist of:

•   A weekly collection of cooked and uncooked food waste using a 23-litre outdoor bin and a 7-litre kitchen caddy

•   A fortnight collection of recycling using a 240-litre wheelie bin for plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays, paper and cardboard, tins and cans and aerosols; residents' existing recycling box for glass; and a small, reusable bag for batteries

•   A fortnightly collection of rubbish using a 140-litre wheelie bin

People in these areas can also pay now for a new, optional garden waste collection starting in June.  The fortnightly service runs all year round and costs £35 a year for a 240-litre wheelie bin or £25 a year for a reusable 120-litre bag.

Reducing Costs

The DWP was set up to find a solution to Dorset's waste needs. 'Recycle for Dorset will replace a patchy service across the county which consisted of  12 different collection scheme, each with different capabilities and structure. By working together, the councils aim to drive down costs by £2m a year, reduce the amount of waste sent to heavily taxed landfill sites and increase Dorset's recycling rate from 50 per cent to more than 65 per cent by 2016.

The service should be in place across Dorset (excluding Bournemouth and Poole) by the end of 2015.