There are many choices which the team hope will suit the different households around the borough. Instead of receiving a new blue bin, they can keep their sack, or people can request a smaller sized bin – or even ask to share with their neighbour.
“We have to free Wigan Borough of costly landfill and stop the throwaway culture,” said deputy leader Cllr David Molyneux. “And most residents tell us they want to help.”
A leaflet later this summer will explain how to make your choices. Around 8,000 survey forms have already been sent to residents.
One resident on Kenyon Road in Standish said: “By using the blue bin it has cut the rubbish we put in the black bin.”
A reply from Elmhow Grove in Wigan was particularly useful - “I felt that the one thing missing from recycling was card and cardboard which I had to take to a tip. This problem has now been solved.” Residents on Orrell Road and nearby Brook Lane said recycling had been made much easier with their new blue bins. But a resident of Manchester Road, Ince said: “I don’t use it.” Their comment was echoed by a Kimberley Street resident who said: “Too many bins. Waste of space. No need for them.
“There is a need,” explained Dr Gail Robinson, the council’s waste manager, “It’s too expensive for us to keep to burying our waste, both in terms of cost to council tax payers and to the environment. The things we all buy need to be dealt with once we’ve finished with them.”
The key to making the blue bin trial a success was to offer choice and accept that different households have different needs. “It’s all about helping people dispose of the things they choose to buy,” says Cllr Molyneux. “The days of putting everything into one bin and burying the contents are long gone. And whilst we don’t make money by recycling, the council’s bills are kept down when we all manage our waste properly. This means when costs are tight, funds can be used for other vital services.”
The blue bins will also take cardboard and Tetrapaks (fresh juice and soups), which is another stage forward to boost the borough’s recycling capabilities.
Annual cost to collect Wigan Borough’s waste: £8.2m
Annual cost to dispose of Wigan Borough’s waste: £9.2m
