Blue Bins
It is vital that only the correct materials are placed in the blue bin. One contaminated bin will affect the entire lorry load, and may result in this waste being diverted to landfill. Bins will be checked for contamination. Any bin found to contain unacceptable materials will not be emptied and the householder will be requested to remove these items prior to their next scheduled collection date.
If you require a new bin please contact the Waste Transfer Station on 028 9127 0302Listed below are the materials which are suitable for recycling in the blue bin, and those which we cannot accept.
Yes Please!
- paper: newspapers; magazines, junk mail (please remove plastic sleeve and envelopes); office paper (sorry we cannot accept shredded paper); exercise books; phone books; catalogues; paper back books (the first preference for paper back books is for these to be passed on to someone else or donated to charity)
- cardboard: cereal boxes; cardboard sleeves; clean frozen food boxes; shoe boxes; corrugated cardboard (remove duct tape); greetings cards; post cards; paper fibre egg boxes; cardboard tubes (e.g. toilet roll, kitchen roll)
- plastic: any rinsed and dried plastic bottles with their plastic lids attached, if possible: this includes plastic milk bottles, plastic drinks bottles, shampoo and detergent bottles etc. NB: lids can only be accepted if they are attached to the bottles
- metal: aerosols; any rinsed and dried food and drinks cans; biscuit tins - please do not attempt to squash or puncture aerosols as they may explode
No Thank You!
- paper: no shredded paper ; laminated paper; cellophane; envelopes; wallpaper; wrapping paper; brown paper; paper napkins or tissues; hard back books
- cardboard: no take away food packaging; waxed cartons (Now Recyclable at Balloo Recycling Centre), waxed boxes or waxed packaging; boxes containing food remnants; boxes with plastic windows
- plastic: no plastic items other than bottles i.e. plastic cups, plates, cutlery, yogurt, margarine tubs, trays; plastic bags; plastic film; clingfilm; bubble wrap and jiffy bags; coat hangers
- metal: no aluminium foil; foil trays or lids; coat hangers
miscellaneous: no glass of any type; batteries; corks; any other waste materials
To help us to boost our targets, we would encourage householders to continue to use our Recycling Centres and Bring Bank Centres for the disposal of other recyclable materials such as shredded paper and envelopes without windows (please place in paper skip), green waste, glass, textiles, waste oil, scrap metal, fluorescent tubes, timber, televisions and computer monitors, car batteries, household batteries, paint and fridges/freezers.
Please ensure that the blue bin is left at the kerbside by 7:30 am on the scheduled collection day.
Lids MUST be fully closed.
In the short-term it is envisaged that the blue bin will remain the property of the Council. Should you move please do not take the blue bin with you.
Below are some of the most frequently asked questions relating to the scheme.
Q. Can I put all the materials into the blue bin together without separating them?
A: The materials listed as ‘Yes Please’ should go into the blue bin without being separated, provided they are clean and dry. They should not be put into plastic bags. Do not insert materials into eachother if there are not the same material (ie do not put steel cans inside cardboard box) as the machines have difficulty recognising the material type. The materials will be sorted at a Materials Recycling Facility (MRF).
Q. What happens if I put the wrong type of waste into
the blue bin?
A: Bins are checked for contamination – those containing unsuitable materials will not be emptied and the householder will be advised to remove these items prior to the next collection.
Q. Why can you not accept shredded paper in the blue
bin?
A: Shredded paper is too small to be recovered successfully by the sorting machinery at the Materials Recycling Facility and becomes mixed with fines, dust and other contaminants. Shredded paper may be taken to paper banks at recycling centres and bring facilities.
Q. Why can you not accept envelopes?
A: Envelopes cannot be included because they contain glue, which makes the paper unsuitable for reprocessing into new newsprint. Envelopes without windows and glue may be taken to paper banks at recycling centres and bring facilities .
Q. Why can I only recycle certain types of plastic and not others?
A: At the moment the scheme can only take plastic bottles. There is a large variety of different types of plastic, many of which are not easily distinguished from one another nor are the markets currently readily available for all types of plastic.
