‘Right thing, right bin’ - First collections of purple-lidded bins for paper and card this week in North Kesteven

More paper and cardboard in North Kesteven could be recycled than ever before - provided only the right things go in households’ new purple-lidded bins.

Residents are asked to ensure their purple-lidded bins contain only clean and dry paper and cardboard ready for the first collections from Monday, September 27, and not any items that may contaminate the contents and cause their purple-lidded bin not to be emptied.

Only dry and clean paper and cardboard, for example frozen food boxes, newspapers, envelopes, magazines, junk mail and cardboard parcel packaging, should go in the new purple-lidded bin. They should go in loose, not bagged.

Paper and card that has been shredded, has become dirty or is greasy, such as takeaway pizza boxes or fast food containers even if they look clean, tissues and kitchen roll, cigarette packets and glittery or foiled wrapping paper and greetings cards should go into the black bin as they cannot be recycled. This waste goes to the Energy from Waste plant at North Hykeham where it is burned to generate electricity and fed back to the grid.

Books should not go in purple-lidded bins either, and if in good condition instead considered for donation to charity, collection points such as at local Household Waste Recycling Centres and supermarkets, or sharing in other ways.

As purple-lidded bins are collected by NKDC’s waste teams next week, they will be taking a look to check that the right items are in them. Where they have the wrong things in and cannot be emptied, they will leave a purple tag on the bin indicating this.

Council Leader Coun Richard Wright said: “We all need to take responsibility for the climate, by doing what we can now to act on it. Ensuring the right things go in our purple-lidded bins is a direct way we can all help make sure more paper and card can be recycled, at a time when demand on our trees and natural resources across the world continues to increase.

“These first collections of purple-lidded bins are a chance to see together the difference that separating recycling will make in ensuring as much paper and cardboard as possible can go straight to our papermill to be recycled, rather than becoming contaminated and sadly unusable.

“By focusing on getting the right things in purple-lidded bins from the beginning we can make sure all the fantastic efforts of our households to adjust to the new purple-lidded bin and separate their recycling do indeed make a difference.”

Residents can check any time on what can and cannot be recycled, including in purple-lidded bins, with the A-Z of recycling and the Right Thing Right Bin leaflet on the website at www.n-kesteven.gov.uk/recyclingIf anyone has not received their purple-lidded bin, or has any questions, there is information and FAQs on the recycling webpage or you can email [email protected]

After the first collection of purple-lidded bins, the following week’s collection will be a black bin week.

Green-lidded bin collections will follow in the week commencing October 11 and should only contain recyclable items such as plastic tubs and bottles, glass, tins and cans – no paper or cardboard. Green-lidded bins in these collections which contain the wrong items will not be able to be emptied, and a tag will be left indicating which items have been found.

You can sign-up for a regular waste e-newsletter and other updates at www.n-kesteven.gov.uk/stayconnected