New recycling bins

Mon 17 Jul 2017, 20:08

Leah: you could half fill it.
I can't wait for these big recycling bins, we put out 3-4 of the boxes every week and they're a right pain, always losing their lids, etc.

Mon 17 Jul 2017, 19:21

The bin will be much too big for us as we have to take it such a long way to put it out, since Derek broke his Femur we have to do all our recycling at the Spendlove site, the boxes are too heavy and I thought a wheelie bin a good idea until I heard how big they would be.

Mon 17 Jul 2017, 18:53

Just to follow up my posting here on Saturday: I see that info on the WODC website gives the dimensions of the new bins as
Height 105cm,
Width 58cm,
Depth 72cm.
This means they are the same dimensions as the dark grey Sulo 'garden waste' bins.
More information here: www.westoxon.gov.uk/residents/bins-recycling/recycling-service-changes-2017/

Mon 17 Jul 2017, 12:11

I will not be accepting a blue bin. It seems farcical that (if I understand correctly) WODC will deliver them and then recollect unwanted ones; I would hazard a guess that they would not be so profligate with their own personal money as they are with ours! I will continue to use my box. Also I declined to pay extra money for garden waste collection, but am keeping my black bin to use as a composter. It seems ideal for the task.

Sun 16 Jul 2017, 17:47 (last edited on Sun 16 Jul 2017, 17:48)

Liz, can you also ensure that Brigid's point is addressed? If those people that want a smaller bin have to wait until February, then presumably their (by then) six-month old large recycling bin will be taken away by WODC, and then disposed of in landfill (as it is made of recycled material that cannot be recycled again).

Far better to just let those people use bags or existing boxes until the smaller bins are properly available.

Sun 16 Jul 2017, 16:34

Never had problem with wheelie bins blowing over but black bins finish up all over the place

Sun 16 Jul 2017, 16:00

can be true i suppose but never had that problem worst come to the worse and you have to have a bin then i doubt that it would be worth putting out if it had so little in, nothing to stop letting a small amount of cement go off in the base that would give a bit of weight and then wouldn't blow over or fall out.

Sun 16 Jul 2017, 15:00

Tim if you only fill a wheelie bin with a small amount of paper or plastic it'll behave exactly as if it was empty in a strong wind and fall over. It's more difficult to weight the larger bins (a brick on the top doesn't work) so if you don't have a large amount of recycling it'll still be all over the street in a gale. Also, the larger bins are more subject to the effects of wind funneling round houses and outbuildings than the boxes.

Sun 16 Jul 2017, 13:10

Well for one I will be happy for a larger bin for the recycling but I do understand if people do not have the space to store the new size bins, but there is a plus side, in that hopefully when the weather gets bad then the contents won't be blown all around the streets and we wont have to go looking to see where our black boxes and lids have either been blown into the roads or where the recycling men have decided to leave them that morning usually 500 yards up the pavement on a good day.
The other downside will be of course the fortnightly collections I can understand why to save money, the council needs to but if you continue to use the black boxes then will you have to increase the number of boxes you store on your premises ? and then the smell over the 2 weeks can only get worse, surely if space allows you would be better off having a wheelie bin with a decent lid will help to stop the odour far better.

Sun 16 Jul 2017, 11:58

Thanks to everyone for your feedback on this, including those who have mailed me. That council officers could be coming round to inspect our homes to see if we are justified in requesting to keep our boxes, and then ruling that we have wheelie bins forced on us if we don't fit their criteria, is something that I will be speaking against very loudly indeed!

Sun 16 Jul 2017, 08:35 (last edited on Sun 16 Jul 2017, 08:35)

I too responded to the WODC 'consultation' about this change and pointed out the difficulty for many Charlbury residents in accommodating another wheelie bin and the increased street clutter, where bins have to be left permanently outside. I speculated that recycling rates will fall as people who cannot or will not have a bin, will just put everything (except glass) in the general waste bin and not bother with the new system. Fortnightly recycling collections will presumably mean that people that do not want wheelie bins (but still want to recycle) and generate a fair amount of waste, having to have an extra black box for general recyclable waste (I assume we all will retain the existing second box for two weeks' worth of glass). BTW I understand food waste will still be collected on a weekly basis.

Sun 16 Jul 2017, 07:05

I mentioned the lack of space in central Charlbury to a man bringing flyers round (last year? Early this year?) and he said they were aware and affected households would be allowed to keep boxes or have bags like a street in chippy which apparently is so steep the lorry can't get up it.

We very rarely fill a single box, so a wheelie bin will be a waste of space, even over the fortnightly collection period it'll change to.

Sat 15 Jul 2017, 23:43

Back in April when I noticed on the WODC website that the new recycling bins were described as similar to a garden waste bin I wrote to WODC pointing out that such a size would be impractical for us an probably many of my neighbours. I received the following reply from Contract Monitoring Officer Mrs Seton:
"I understand your need to have a smaller recycling bin and I can tell you that this is currently being considered. I know there are variety of sizes being considered but at the moment I am unable to tell you what those sizes are.
"I am hopeful for a positive outcome on this and hopefully it will suit your needs."

If they really are as large as Tony has described of course we will also be refuseniks.

Liz: When you are at the meeting on Thursday can you please find out (and report back to us) what sort of process was employed to ascertain the users' needs with regard to the capacity and size of the recycling wheelie bins. If we end up with bins too large for most people to use then this will be costly boondogle that the Council can ill afford in these times.

Sat 15 Jul 2017, 22:38

Another hand in the air for being able to keep boxes. We couldn't practically have any wheelie bins - the only place we could feasibly store them is via a series of steps and bumps that wouldn't be suitable for hauling a bin, and the Market Street pavements are too narrow to keep them at the front of the front of the house. (There are some houses in central Charlbury that don't have any garden at all, so the need for boxes is presumably greater still for them.)

Sat 15 Jul 2017, 22:18

What happens to food waste? Does it carry on as a weekly collection?

Sat 15 Jul 2017, 12:46

I telephoned the Bins department yesterday and was told that WODC would take delivery of a smaller kind of wheelie bin in 'about February', although it wouldn't necessarily be made available to householders at once. Meanwhile, my name has already been put down to have the larger bin taken away within 28 days of its arrival, but it seems that I can't avoid having it delivered.

This whole business seems to be directed at making life easier for the binmen. Who will want to go outside to a wheelie bin with every piece of scrap paper, tin or plastic? I suspect that many of us will continue to keep boxes indoors and then empty them into the (compulsory) bin once a fortnight. Leaving glass in the box, of course.

Sat 15 Jul 2017, 12:22

Will there also be a choice for the size of bin we can have?
Something larger than the current green waste bins will be far too large for us and even with a fairly large garden will just take space we could use better.

Sat 15 Jul 2017, 11:23

Could the Committee also clarify the measurements of the new bins; the letter gives the width (i.e. side to side) measurement as 72 cm which is 14 cm (five and a half inches) wider than the dark grey garden waste bins.

Sat 15 Jul 2017, 08:39

Yes please Liz. You just want numbers - how do we let them know - address etc, just via WODC website? Thanks for pointing this out.

Fri 14 Jul 2017, 18:25

You may have received a letter today to say that new wheelie bins will be issued for recycling in September.

I know that for some houses in Charlbury another wheelie bin is not practical. I argued at the consultation that people should be allowed a choice of box or bin, and officers agreed. However, that does not come across in the letter.

I will be at an Environment Committee meeting this coming Thursday. If you would prefer to keep your boxes, please can you let me know as it would be good to be able to give officers an idea of how many people would prefer this option.