Aberdeenshire Council says its new orange-lid bins are saving them £2 million per year by increasing the amount of cleaner material it collects and reducing residual waste.
Aberdeenshire Council rolled out orange-lid bins throughout the region after receiving £3.5 million from Zero Waste Scotland’s Recycling Improvement Fund.
The orange-lid recycling bin, which is made from recycled materials, is for metal tins, cans, aerosols and foil, food and drink cartons, plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays.
Aberdeenshire Council says the quality of paper, card, and cardboard recycling, which is collected in blue-lid bins and represents approximately 70% of the overall kerbside recycling, has ‘improved dramatically’ and is consistently below 3% contamination.
The overall recycling rate is also up by 2.8%, increasing from 40.2% in 2022 to 43% in 2023.
This is a testament to the hard work of our teams and, crucially, the fantastic participation of Aberdeenshire residents.
The amount of residual waste, which is disposed of in black lid bins and recycling centres, being collected and disposed of decreased by 1,031 tonnes from 2022 to 2023 and a further 1,861 tonnes from 2023 to 2024.
Aberdeenshire Council says the cash savings are being incorporated into its Waste and Recycling Services budget.
Chair of the council’s Infrastructure Services Committee (ISC) Cllr Alan Turner said: “This is a testament to the hard work of our teams and, crucially, the fantastic participation of Aberdeenshire residents.
“While the data has shown the significant benefits of the rollout, there is more that can be done. This is particularly true of food waste, which still appears in large percentages inside our black lid bins and could be put to much better use than incineration.”
