Recycling for residents who live in flats is set to become even easier!
Flats make up around 70 per cent of properties in Hammersmith & Fulham but the recycling rate from flats is estimated at just 10 per cent.
H&F Council is set to launch a brand new scheme to make it easier for flat dwellers to recycle using Smart Banks.
From this summer, all households with access to Smart Banks will be given a new re-usable bag to make it even easier to store recycling in your home and transport it to the recycling bank. Selected locations
will also benefit from other improvements including:
- Converting some refuse chutes so that they can be used for recycling - this approach trebled recycling rates on one estate in Westminster.
- Installing recycling banks on each floor.
- Providing extra Smart Banks where coverage is limited.
Recycling has never been so important, since the cost of disposing of rubbish rose by 20 per cent two months ago (April).
It now costs £128 to dispose of a tonne of waste, compared to just £71 a ton for recycling.
By using the new Smart Banks to recycle even more, residents in flats could play their part in helping to recycling an extra 4,400 tons over the next four years.– that is the equivalent weight of 590 London buses!
Cllr Greg Smith, cabinet member for residents’ services, said:
"The
best ways for H&F to avoid paying the high cost of waste disposal is
for residents to recycle as much as possible. With so many residents
living in flats, it is vital that we make it as easy as possible for
them to do their bit. The council is making huge savings across the
board as we look to respond to the national debt crisis and the more
residents recycle, the more funds the council can direct towards the
services that matter most to residents.”
As part of the scheme, a team of recycling promoters will be visiting blocks of flats to answer residents’ questions about recycling and to deliver the re-useable bags and an instruction leaflet.
Funding for the initiative came from the London Waste and Recycling Board. In order to obtain the support the council created a ‘flats inventory’ which contained information about nearly 250 blocks of
flats describing existing refuse/recycling arrangements and identifying opportunities for service improvements.
What can you recycle with the council?
You can put the following in the borough's Smart recycling banks or orange sacks:
- Paper and card - newspapers, magazines, catalogues, directories, leaflets, loose paper, card and cardboard (please flatten).
- Glass - glass bottles and jars (no lids please) Cans, tins and aerosols.
- Plastic bottles (please remove lids from plastic bottles and squash them if possible).
- Paper-based drinks and liquid food cartons (e.g. Tetra Paks).
- Yoghurt pots, plastic containers, bottles, tubs, pots and trays.
The following items cannot be placed in Smart Sacks or Smart Banks:
- Plastic bags or plastic film, tops, polystyrene.
- Food waste, cigarette ends or garden waste.
- Broken glass, pyrex or window glass.
- Paint, chemical containers or batteries.
- Builder’s waste or rubble.
- Foil or polystyrene.
- Paper towels, tissues or nappies.
- Textiles
Useful information:
Click on www.lbhf.gov.uk for details of your nearest recycling facilities.
Call the Cleaner, Greener Hotline on 020 8753 1100 between 8am and 8pm Monday to Friday, or email Cleaner.Greener@lbhf.gov.uk.
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