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Arun District Council food waste trial is ready to launch

Arun District Council food waste trial is ready to launch

Food waste

 

A selected area of Arun is due to begin a new recycling and rubbish collection trial to include separate collections of food waste and Absorbent Hygiene Products.

On 19 May Arun District Council in partnership with West Sussex County Council, will launch their new trial collection service that includes weekly food waste and Absorbent Hygiene Product (AHP) collections, such as nappies and incontinence waste.

Arun District Council is the first district in West Sussex to trial separate food waste and AHP collections, as part of an enhanced recycling and rubbish collection service.

The trial service uses a ‘1-2-3’ collection system, as follows:

  1. Weekly food waste collections and an optional, free subscription service of Absorbent Hygiene Product collections e.g. nappies and incontinence waste;
     
  2. Existing fortnightly recycling collections and garden waste (charged, subscription service). Small electrical items will also be collected fortnightly from kerbside properties.
     
  3. Three weekly general rubbish collections in new 240L wheelie bins.


The main trial area will be within Courtwick & Toddington Ward, comprising approximately 1,150 properties north of the A259, including the new Kingley Gate development kerbside properties and a number of flats. Collections will begin here on the 19th May 2021.

All residents who have been selected to participate and receive kerbside collections, will be given free bins, including a lockable food waste recycling bin and a handy kitchen caddy. They will also be supplied with a new 240L wheelie bin for their rubbish if they don’t have one already.

Residents who live in flats will be supplied with a free kitchen caddy and their bin stores will be upgraded to collect food waste and AHPs.

Residents chosen to take part in the trial will be notified, by post, over the next few days. They will also receive a starter pack, including an information booklet about what to do, approximately three months’ supply of biodegradable liners and a handy collection calendar before the trial starts.

A small number of Houses of Multiple Occupancy (HMO) properties within River Ward will also be included within the trial. Collections here will commence in September 2021 following review of the initial trial roll-out.  This information and learning will be used to help develop the roll out and communications for the HMO properties.

You can learn more about the trial and whether or not your postcode is involved, by visiting www.arun.gov.uk/123-collection-trial. There you will also find some useful tips on reducing your food waste and making food go further.

Councillor Samantha-Jayne Staniforth, Cabinet Member for Neighbourhood Services said: “We are really excited to see the introduction of this trial. We have looked at the results of the waste composition analysis and feel we have selected an area that is representative of the district. The analysis showed us that food waste makes up approximately 42% of the rubbish currently put out for collection,  the areas selected will provide us with an accurate picture of how much food waste and (AHP) we can divert away from being processed as waste.

“The trial areas will contain a good mix of property types, including a small number of flats and HMOs, to test different operational arrangements and communications, so that we can make this a real positive and productive experience for all involved.”

West Sussex County Council’s Cabinet Member for Environment, Councillor Deborah Urquhart said: “This 1-2-3 trial is the first of its type to take place in West Sussex. Our aim is to gain valuable feedback from residents throughout enabling a full review to assist in re-shaping and enhancing rubbish and recycling collections for the district and across the County in the future. This will help Arun increase recycling rates and West Sussex to meet, and hopefully continue to exceed, the Government’s target to increase recycling rates up to 55% by 2025 and 65% by 2035”