Guest blog by Jane Finnemore, Development Manager in the Recycling and Waste Services Team at the Borough Council.
The focus for the event this year seems to be on people who stepped up during the pandemic on the frontline, and our crews certainly did that. We were all very overwhelmed by the sudden rush of messages to crews from residents grateful to them for continuing to collect – seeing how much of an essential service they were suddenly. We’ve worked really hard to keep our crews safe, and of course, they’ve had their own fears and health worries, just like everyone else – but they carried on collecting, regardless. Of course, with so many people working from home or on furlough, waste volumes we were collecting from homes rose quite a lot. We did our best to support our local business waste customers, too, as it was clear that local business people were under incredible stress in such a period of uncertainty. We’ve been delighted to welcome so many of those customers back.
I think some of the biggest heroes of the pandemic have been our residents. In a pretty scary situation and unfamiliar new ‘normal’ they set about decluttering their houses into our various collection services, and then embraced our new recycling service – launched early, during the pandemic. We’ve increased our recycling tonnages, and many people who found the previous service a bit complicated are now using it, too. The new recycling service is much simpler to use, and residents are certainly reflecting that. When we were able to restart our food waste collections residents quickly got back in the habit, with new users doubling the tonnages we collect. Our residents really have the recycling habit, and I think it’s our job to keep explaining why it’s so important. We have a tiny contamination issue here, much less than many neighbouring councils, so we know that our good relationship with residents and simple service is working, and that know how important it is to get things right.
Recycling saves materials from being wasted and gives them multiple new uses. That’s so important for saving resources, reducing carbon, and getting us to net zero. We really are in a climate emergency, and everything we do to promote environmental sustainability is crucial. We want to make it easy for everyone to do that from home. I’ve never lost my excitement that the things I put into my recycling bin at home can turn into renewed versions of themselves, or something totally different, and while that’s usually here in the UK, it can be somewhere else in the world, too. Things we don’t want anymore are resources that prevent mining, extraction, deforestation and pollution here and abroad – they are raw materials with a whole range of potential new uses. It’s our job at the Council to convey that potential to residents, and make it easy for them to do their bit.
The waste industry is in exciting times, waiting for the DEFRA consultation results which will give us an England-wide strategy that will shape collections and new statutory responsibilities, not just for us as a council, but for businesses, too. We’ll have a lot to plan and deliver. The next few years will see transformative changes, and it’s brilliant to think that we’ll be able to start working with businesses locally on the same journey we’ve embarked on with our residents.
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