Councillors in Aberdeenshire will discuss options for garden waste collection at a workshop later this year.
The council’s waste service has laid out four potential options following a request from the infrastructure services committee back in January.
One potential option would be an opt-in kerbside collection service for garden waste available to all households across Aberdeenshire.
A business case developed by the council highlights the costs, benefits and risks that would be associated with such a service.
Garden waste is currently collected at a network of recycling centres and seasonal waste points – with the council collecting up to 10,000 tonnes on average each year.
There is no legislative requirement for the council to provide kerbside collection and the current budget would not be able to support the service.
What are the four options?
- Free kerbside collection
- Chargeable kerbside collection
- Four-week collection cycle
- Extension of the seasonal garden waste points to additional, smaller communities
Considering the best options
Alternative options with lower costs and risks have also been identified, including chargeable kerbside collections and expanding seasonal waste points across the region.
All options will be fully explored at the workshop later in the year.
Councillor John Crawley, infrastructure services committee chairman, said: “We are fortunate in Aberdeenshire to have several options available to us to easily dispose of garden waste – whether that be home composting or via a household recycling centre or a seasonal garden waste point.
“However, the evidence is clear that far too much green material is still heading into our residual waste and we simply cannot allow that to continue.”
Vice chairwoman Isobel Davidson added: “I am delighted that officers will be getting councillors round the table to discuss the proposed options for a garden waste collection and to go over a number of valid points raised during committee.
“By carefully considering the best options for garden waste collection we can help ensure we are diverting this rich resource from landfill and further improving our recycling capacity across Aberdeenshire.”
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