Council to reduce recycling collections to every three weeks

[Allshallbewell2021]

I saw this in the fine print coming to us for spring 2025.

Fortnightly for black bins and every three weeks for recycling.

I get it - they're all completely broke.

I only know 1 person with waste disposal. Our council collects food/garden waste. It is composted by them.

I wouldn't be sticking all this down a waste disposal system!

You can place these food and garden waste items in your brown bin:

flowers
plants
grass cuttings
hedge trimmings
leaves
twigs
small branches
bark
raw and cooked meat and fish including skin and bones
raw and cooked fruit and vegetables including cores and peelings
bread, cakes and pastries
eggs including shells
rice and pastas
tea bags and coffee grounds
pet food - wet and dry

I have 4 outside bins. 1 general waste and 3 recycling (paper and cardboard, mixed recycling, food and garden waste). We can get free larger recycling bins which we have done

They ether come and collect it or we take it down to the council tip. It amounts to the same thing. What else do they expect us to do with it, burn it ?.

In the UK? Sounds like something for the wealthy in big houses.

I moved last year. My previous block of flats didn’t recycle as the council couldn’t manage it. I miss those days!

it’s all rearranging deckchairs as long as the economy depends on consumerism and the population goes up. I’m single, no car, not much of a consumer but if they reduce collections to the flats I live in, I’ll be pissed off.

On garbage disposals (insinkerators) - we discovered them whilst living in the US so put one in when we redid the kitchen. I’ve never come across any British household with one unless there’s an American connection somewhere. Most people that come over seem terrified of it 🤣 so I definitely don’t think they’re common.

We all have different experiences I guess but it pisses me off no end that supermarkets are still using so much plastic.

@ohthejoys21 - are you in America? The only house I have ever seen in uk or Europe with an insinkerater was a friends house in London. She bought it from an American family who had added it. Within a year it was blocked and plumber told her off for using ( plus it was scary as hell, thought my arm would get chewed off!). She had it removed.

Just putting on compost heap in garden is safer, promotes worms, helps keep garden soil maintained locally etc.

I don't understand. I'm in the UK and have never, ever seen a modern kitchen without an in-sink erator.

I don't understand. I'm in the UK and have never, ever seen a modern kitchen without an in-sink erator

Do you live in posh parts? No-one I know has one.

I'm in the UK and have never, ever seen a modern kitchen without an in-sink erator

Are you sure? I don't know anyone who has one and have never seen one, except on US films/TV usually because someone has had their hand ripped off by one.

They weren't in any of the brochures when we had our kitchen redone a few years ago and I'm not even sure that UK water systems are designed to deal with the kitchen drain being used for food waste - after all we're constantly being told about the problem of fat bergs and told not to put anything except the five Ps into our toilets, which all ends up in the same place.

In-sink erators are illegal across most of Europe unless you have your own septic tank. I actually think they're super popular in the states because having your own septic tank is extremely common. They are extremely uncommon in older cities though, like NYC and were illegal until the late 90s.
The older communal plumbing is just not designed for it. Even in the countryside, most of Europe is plugged into communal plumbing. I'm not saying they don't exist, but its really not that common to have a septic tank now, even if a property relied on one before.
Plus England already has a huge issue with sewage going into our waters. We don't need to add compostable food waste to that too

This is very odd. Why wouldn't they ban them then in the UK if they clog up the pipes? I've just asked my dh who says lots of houses don't have them, so my apologies.

Our blue bin (paper/card) and green bin (glass/plastic/metal) are 4 weekly
brown bin (food) 2 weekly
grey bin (non recyclable) 3 weekly.

been like that a few years now.

I’ve never known anyone have one. Our kitchen is quite new.

I'm wondering what sort of circles @ohthejoys21 moves in if she thinks 'everyone' in the UK has an in-sinkerator.

According to Grand Designs magazine (is your DH Kevin McLoud @ohthejoys21?) it's estimate that 6% of homes in the UK have them

https://www.granddesignsmagazine.com/kitchen/waste-disposal-units/

Ours is a 3 weekly cycle.

we have 4 bins - green (food & garden), grey (general), black (glass & tins), blue (paper)

week 1 - green & blue
week 2 - green & grey
week 3 - green & black

works fine, grey (general) bit is smaller than the others.

https://cebasolutions.co.uk/waste-disposal-units-guidance-via-ceda/#:~:text=Waste%20disposal%20units%20have%20long,be%20used%20in%20this%20way.

this legislation seems to say food waste disposal systems are no longer allowed to be used in uk

Not sure what you mean by that and give me a break.. have you got a dishwasher? If so what kind of circles do you mix in?

Just on the subject of maggots.
I put some raw chicken into my brown/garden/food composting bin a few years ago (I now cook any raw chicken in the microwave before I put it in the compost).

When I realised there were maggots pouring like lava out of that bin I spent all night trying to get rid of them. It was like a night in hell. In the end I gave up but in the morning the birds had eaten every last one of them, like a miracle - but it was a vile experience.

I've only seen those, what we used to call "garberators" in the USA.

I agree the supermarkets should take more responsibility - also manufacturers who suddenly decide to use non-eco-friendly packaging - eg Heinz. Beans come in tins which are infinitely recyclable. So why on earth would you suddenly sell them in plastic tubs? The supermarkets should laugh and refuse to stock them! Same goes for fruit in tubs - tinned fruit is fine.

I've not even heard of them. If you mean waste disposal units, we had one when I was a child, but it wasn't installed. It sat in a box. Maybe my parents got one and then realised it would block the pipes and didn't know what to do with it. My dad worked in the electric industry so maybe he was given it or got it cheap -for a reason-

Hampshire is also proposing this. But of course it would, because IT doesn't need to deal with fly-tipping.

The district councils have to deal with fly-tipping but don't get a say on whether the tips get closed or not.

@enchantedsquirrelwood that's a nuance I was unaware of, and explains a great deal!