Waste Management Strategy your questions answered

Under the new collection system, the available capacity for recyclables would increase from 220L per fortnight under the current box scheme to up to 360L per fortnight (180L per bin), increasing the space available and making it easier to recycle more.

We will work with residents to make sure that they have enough capacity to contain their recycling.

Any changes to the collection service will be communicated with residents well in advance and appropriate information will be provided informing of any changes to the service.

Yes. Residents who require an assisted collection will continue to receive this service. This service will be reviewed to ensure that this is supporting all those residents who need it.

The new strategy aims to enable us to recycle more, waste less and deliver efficient services. It will also help us to address our climate emergency challenges.

The strategy was approved by Full Council on Tuesday 27 July 2021. The changes to the collection service will be implemented from 2022 onwards. We will continue to keep residents informed throughout the process.

We have carried out a review of all properties to determine if they are suitable for the new recycling service. If you receive the new recycling bins it is likely that your property has been assessed as being able to accommodate these.

Wheeled bins will be delivered to properties that can store them and will only be removed if properties do not have the space for storage. If you have been delivered a wheeled bin you will need to use it for your recycling collections, as per the information provided. Recycling Collections will be changing from weekly to fortnightly, bins will give you more space, are more secure and will reduce the risk of littering.

You should continue to use your box for presenting your recycling for emptying during the week that they have been delivered.

Recycling will then become a fortnightly collection service and will need to be presented on the opposite week to your domestic collection for emptying.

No, they need to be presented on the opposite week to your domestic collection. The new bins are much larger in size so there is plenty of space to store materials until your first collection.

You should continue to put out your recycling boxes for collection during the week that your new bins have been delivered.

After the delivery week, recycling will then be collected fortnightly using your new bins.

Please use your recycling boxes for the last time during the week when your new recycling bins are delivered.

Boxes will not be emptied after this week.

Your recycling changes to a fortnightly service after your new recycling bin delivery week. Recycling bins should be put out for emptying on the opposite week to your domestic (black bin) collection.

The new service is being rolled out across the borough from Monday 14 February 2022. The roll out plan will see around 12,000 households a month on average receiving their new containers alongside a full printed information pack which will include bin stickers and instructions on what needs to be placed in each container.

The new bins will be delivered to households one round at a time between February and November 2022. Keep an eye out for the new service bin check which will be coming soon.

We are unable to recycle plastic bags at the moment, due to problems they cause with the sorting equipment. This is something we are hoping to address in the future. It is easy to recycle plastic bags at the supermarket. Many of them have boxes for collecting unwanted plastic bags.

We also encourage the use of reusable bags. We all must work together, including with producers of plastic bags and wrapping, to reduce the amount of single-use plastic that is produced and disposed of.

Yes, please make sure that waste that cannot be recycled anywhere else is fully contained within the black bin and the lid if fully closed for collection.

Given our recycling ambitions, the research with residents shows that our current recycling boxes are not large enough, and many residents have to leave additional recycling, for collection.

People have also said that they have difficulty in carrying the containers and have difficulties with the lids.

The current service means that operatives must sort the waste manually at the kerbside. This increases the time spent at each property, adding to carbon emissions, and increasing costs. Maintaining the current level of service would not meet the borough’s climate change goals. It is an out-of-date system that costs too much money and does not provide the level of service our customers expect.

Boxes will not be collected by the service. You can keep the old boxes for your own use. Once cleaned, these boxes are great for storage or for growing plants and vegetables or even home composting.

If you don't want to keep your old boxes you can recycle them at your nearest recycling centre, otherwise you could use them to put out extra recycling alongside your new recycling bins.

The new 180L recycling bins are black with different coloured lids, one red and one blue. More information about what can be recycled in each bin can be found on our new recycling collection page. 

We will continue to collect and recycle the same materials as before. The only change will be that textiles will not be recycled but will be processed using energy from waste. We will be encouraging people to use other more sustainable channels for their textiles.

The new service will be more efficient and cost effective for us. The new recycling approach will make collections quicker, easier and safer for our operatives. The service will use newer, more efficient vehicles which can carry more recycling and they will spend less time with idling engines outside of properties therefore reducing climate impacts. The changes made to collection days in late 2021 also ensured the routes and rounds are as efficient as possible. 

No, you will not be charged when you order a replacement bin after it has been stolen or damaged.

Transition to the new service will take place one round at a time. This may mean that neighbours around the corner, across the road or even next door have received their bins before you.

If you have received the new recycling bins it is likely that your property has been assessed as being able to accommodate these. However, if the following applies to you then we may have made a mistake:

• you currently receive a non-standard collection service (such as a bag collection)
• there is nowhere outside your property where the bins could be safely stored without causing significant access or health and safety issues
• you have received a property exception letter

If this does apply to you then you will need to complete our property exception form (coming soon).

Please note: you will need the reference number found on your letter to enable you to complete the form.

Recycling and waste bins are provided to each property in the borough and should be at your property when you move in. If you have moved into a new build property your developer should have arranged for these to be delivered on your behalf. If you have moved into a property previously lived in, then the previously occupants should have left all the required bins behind.

Garden bins will be delivered upon subscription to the service. A new garden bin will be delivered for free – please contact us if these are missing and you wish to subscribe to the service. If you have moved from a property within the borough and have already subscribed to the garden waste service, please contact us to arrange for your permit to be transferred to your new address.

Yes. The service will not change in Chester City Centre.

An information pack and new recycling bins will be delivered to your property ready for your new collections.

If after using the new recycling service you find that you still need additional bins, you can order more.

We have carried out a review of all properties to determine if they are suitable for the new recycling service. If you haven’t received the new recycling bins it is likely that your property has been assessed as being unable to accommodate these and will be classed as an exception.

If you live in one of the property exceptions, you will receive a letter prior to your transfer onto the new service. This letter will include your unique reference number so please keep this safe.

All properties will receive the new recycling bins unless they have been assessed as unable to accommodate these for storage or access reasons.

Recycling will be collected every fortnight; this will mean that you will accumulate more recycling. Residents will benefit from using the bins to contain all recycling safely and securely.

The brown bins for food waste will continue to be collected every week. Please continue to use your existing brown bin.

Sometimes bins are left unemptied if they contain the wrong type of waste. Crews will not collect extra waste such as bin bags placed out along with domestic or garden bins.

Crews will not collect bins that are too heavy, due to the risk of damage or injury to the collection crew, the container or the bin lorry. More information about what should be put in each type of bin or recycling box can be found on our new recycling collection page.

An information pack will be delivered with your new bins. This will contain stickers for your to put on the front of the recycling bins.

We have carried out a review of all properties to determine if they are suitable for the new recycling service. If you have received the new recycling bins it is likely that your property has been assessed as being able to accommodate these. You will not be offered an alternative.

You will benefit from using the bins rather than carrying heavy, leaky boxes and there is more space to recycle.

The old vehicles have reached the end of their working life. As they are replaced with the new fleet, they will be responsibly disposed of.

The back of each recycling vehicle is divided into two sections: one larger than the other. The materials from the blue lidded bin (paper and cardboard) are emptied into the larger side and the red lidded bin (mixed recycling) into the smaller side. Materials are kept separate in the vehicle ready for further sorting when they reach the recycling depot.

Keeping materials separate increases their quality by reducing contamination. High quality materials are more likely to be recyclable and attract the highest possible material value which means we receive some income to contribute towards the total costs of running the service.

The proposed changes are predicted to reduce carbon emissions by reducing the number of collection vehicles on the roads, and those vehicles will be more efficient and environmentally friendly.

The new kerbside collection service is predicted to reduce carbon emissions by around 220,000kg of CO2.

We are exploring a mixture of waste collection vehicle options to help reduce emissions and help tackle our climate change emergency. This includes a mixture of hybrid vehicles, fully electric vehicles and the most carbon efficient diesel vehicles that are available with a view to repower these as the technology and infrastructure allows.