Following the approval of their new waste strategy in July 2022, New Forest District Council (NFDC) will be updating on plans for new recycling and rubbish services at their Environment and Sustainability Overview and Scrutiny Panel meeting on 12 January 2023.
NFDC are now planning to introduce wheelie bins for garden waste in April 2024, before delivering further service change from 2025.
Further service change will include households receiving separate food waste collections, wheelie bins, and being able to recycle more plastics from the kerbside.
Cllr Steve Davies, portfolio holder for environment and coastal services, said “We have been reviewing the timeline for the new service, and how we can deliver it as smoothly as possible for residents.
This has included looking at whether we could introduce wheelie bins for all our recycling and rubbish services in 2024.
“To make all planned changes to the service, we are reliant on new sorting facilities in Hampshire, which are currently expected from 2025.
And we’re waiting on information from government to understand funding and timelines which will impact the service.
“It’s important we get the new service right, so it works for our community for the long run.
For this reason, we’ll be starting with changes to garden waste collections, and introducing further changes once we have measures in place to deliver them effectively.
“A new garden waste service in 2024 will allow us to start making vital action to protect the environment and reduce waste.
Wheelie bins for garden waste will provide double the capacity of sacks, and allow us to collect more recyclable garden waste, which will increase recycling rates.
Plus, there is the added advantage to our customers and our crews of being able to wheel bins rather than carry heavy bags.”
For households who need support taking garden waste to the edge of their property, NFDC will continue to provide their assisted collection service.
And they will be surveying properties across the district to identify which will need alternatives to wheelie bins.
The council will soon update garden waste customers and residents on how to apply for the April 2023 garden waste subscription year.
Residents can read about planned changes to the service online at https://www.newforest.gov.uk/wastestrategy, or contact the council’s customer services for a print copy.
