A “compromise” three-weekly kerbside waste collection cycle across Aberdeenshire has been approved, after the council lost out on millions of pounds of funding and postponed its original plans.
The authority voted to push ahead with a controversial new collection system at a cost of about £4.3 million in January.
However, the scheme relied on vital funding of £3.2m from Zero Waste Scotland.
The new system, which would involve new bins, was due to commence next April and had been proposed to reduce the volume of waste going to landfill in order to meet recycling targets.
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However, due to the Scottish Government’s new plans for a deposit return scheme, Zero Waste Scotland’s annual budget has not yet been confirmed – and the funding offered to Aberdeenshire Council has been withdrawn, placing the proposals in limbo.
Yesterday, councillors on the infrastructure services committee voted to go ahead with an “interim” measure to help increase recycling rates until funding can be secured.
The new system will mean recyclables are collected one week, landfill material the next and then recycling on the third week, along with food waste every week.
Councillor Peter Argyle, chairman of the committee, said: “It’s a compromise, it’s not where we want to be but it’s what we can afford to do and it will continue to get across a message that our residents need to be more responsible about how they handle their waste and how they dispose of it.
“It’s a step along the way and, in that sense, it’s an interim measure before we move along hopefully with financial support from Zero Waste Scotland.”
A fortnightly bin cycle is presently in place, with landfill bins collected one week and recycling the other, with food waste every week.
The new service will be piloted in some areas this year and rolled out to the rest of Aberdeenshire in 2020. Households will be contacted in advance by post.
