Brown Bin Collection Banbridge District Council

Barry PatienceHead of Technical Services

Background Population cc 19,000 (50% urban, 50%

rural) Bin collection scheme: Alternate week; green (with insert) and

brown, then black. Green bin (mixed dry recyclable) with insert

(glass) Brown bin (food and garden organic waste) Black bin (landfill waste)

Focus on brown bin for organics Brown bins rolled out 100% by 2005

Initially for peelings and garden waste only

2008 public allowed to put all food waste including meat and bones into bin.

WRAP survey Spring 2009

WRAP findings Samples taken from Acorn groups 1,2,3,4,5.

Capture rate was 44% in Banbridge

Separate collection rates averaged 60% with Belfast at 45%, in similar Acorn groups.

Weight of food in brown bin was 1.4kg hh wk. average for the other 6 was 1.9kg hh wk.

Scope for improvements and better communication

Campaigns

‘Must’ and Must not’ stickers

Hibernation publicity

‘How do you do yours?’

Ongoing campaigns

Since 2009 3 seasons in Banbridge!!

Cutting (April – Sep), some cutting, no cutting (Dec-Feb)

Summer tonnages since 2009 > 6% Winter tonnages since 2009 > 27%

Winter tonnages are 50% lower than in the Summer.

Bins collected drop from 75% of possible bins in the summer to 50% in the winter. (Barry’s statistics)

Food or not food; that is the question!

4.1kg hh wk is collected in the winter

Winter is a time when the green waste has all but stopped; drop by 65% in CRC.

Note: over the last few years food being wasted has dropped by around 15%

Conclusion

The brown bin collecting food and garden organic waste works.

The collected waste has a significant amount of food captured (44%>>>)

The public satisfaction with the scheme is 88%>

Good EU standard product.