Published: Thursday 27th October 2016 | 11.50am
Cannock Chase Council thanks residents following the launch of their contamination campaign, as 87% of the District are doing extremely well and getting the right item in the right bin.
The contamination campaign was launched in August this year, following an increased number of contaminated loads being discovered at the recycling facility.
The campaign in conjunction with partners Biffa Municipal Ltd focused on key items which had been regularly found in rejected loads from the blue bin recycling. These included nappies, animal bedding, refuse sacks/plastic bags, food waste, textiles and paint pots.
This week marks the fourth week that Biffa have been issuing tags to those residents that have included contaminated items in their blue bin. However figures have shown on average 87% of the District are recycling correctly and have not received a tag on their bin.
Councillor John Preece, Portfolio Leader for Environment said “I would like to say a big thank you to the residents of Cannock Chase. It was essential that the campaign was introduced, as the number of rejected loads from the blue bin was growing, which would eventually cost the tax payer.
I know recycling can be confusing for some people and a lot of residents get it unintentionally wrong. This is occasionally due to the fact that there is a recycling symbol on some products. However, this means that the item was made out of recycled material, not that it can always be recycled.
As part of the contamination campaign Biffa have had to clamp down by not emptying the blue bin, if it contains any bagged waste. This is because some people were hiding contaminated items in bags. The Council has always stated that items in the blue bin should be clean and loose, not bagged. However this has not always been rigidly enforced.
Residents mistakenly think that their Council Tax pays for waste and recycling collections, when the reality is that only 4% of council tax goes towards waste and recycling.
This campaign is a positive step to getting recycling right across the District and again I would like to sincerely thank those residents who have got it right.”
You can find out what goes in which bin by using our ‘Click to search’ facility on the website: