As of 1 April, Sunderland residents are set to see a change to their bin collection. Now, the general waste (green) bin will be collected one week, then the recycling (blue) bin the week after, Sunderland City Council have confirmed.
Residents have already received letters giving details of what is happening with the collection changes and also supplied a calendar showing which bins will be collected and when.
With the cut the council are looking to save more than £700,000 within in the next financial year. The cuts will be reinvested into environmental enforcement, such as tackling fly-tipping.
Councillor Michael Mordey, the council’s Portfolio Holder for City Services, said: “The City Council first developed plans for alternate weekly collections more than five years ago.
“However, in 2012 the council received a ‘Pickles grant’ from the government to help support weekly general waste collections for the next five years. That grant ends next month.
Mordey says that the people of Sunderland have been very understanding about the change in collection and believes Wearside are behind the rest of the country in doing this:
“The vast majority of councils across the country no longer offer a weekly refuse collection and Sunderland is now coming into line with the rest of the country.
“The council has been explaining its reasoning behind the move as part of its budget consultation and people are very understanding.
“Our studies and evidence show that with a weekly collection of general refuse or recycling materials of more than 200 litres, that’s more than 50 gallons, most households can manage. This is especially if they recycle more and use their blue bin efficiently.”
Callum Patton is a resident of Sunderland, he thinks that the cuts will be a big issue for people: “Nah probably not the best because at the minute, from what I know, the green bin is filled after about four days so having to wait two weeks to get it emptied will be a right clart on. Bins overflowing and all sorts.”
Michael Griffin, who also lives in Sunderland, believes it could help people recycle more. He said: “I think it will have a negative effect on some house holds but it will be a good move as it may make people utilise their recycling bin more.”
If you have any questions about the new alternate weekly bin collection, read the FAQ document on their website. For more information on what is allowed in the blue bin, click here.