Denbighshire waste collection service: council answers your questions

 On June 3, the council introduced changes to recycling and waste collections, including new containers and weekly collections for recyclable materials, and the scrapping of the blue wheelie bin.

Since then, some residents have been required to separate their “dry” recycling using a new three-tier “Trolibocs”.

There is also a free new weekly collection service for small electrical items, household batteries and textiles.

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But the council has so far issued multiple apologies for residents across the county not having their bins collected on time.

This is what Denbighshire County Council said in response to numerous topics concerning the new system (all quotes from a council spokesperson)

Has any member of the refuse collection staff left since the new service came in?

“No member of staff has left since the new service was put into place. There is a level of sickness, as with any workplace, and it would be inappropriate to comment further.

“Staff from other services of the council are being redeployed to help with tasks to support the front-line collection crews, and we are also looking into employing agency staff to support our front-line services.”

Rubbish was dumped on Princes Street by residents who had three collections missed (Image: Submitted)

What is being done to address the routes binmen are taking?

“Routes have been carefully planned to meet the needs of the new service. They are new, with new vehicles and new methods of working which naturally will take time to bed in.

“During the first week, we found that it was taking longer than expected for routes to be completed, which led to missed collections.

“However, since then, efficiency is up on many routes.

“We know that there are some routes which will need to be reconsidered as there are other factors to consider, e.g. size of vehicles and access routes, distance to the depot, and data we gather each day will drive any changes to routes.”

Is it taking crews longer to empty the Trolibocs containers?

“Crews are taking a little longer to empty containers as there are more of them, but as the new service rolls forward, we can see crews are getting used to it and the efficiency of the service is improving.

Are electric vehicles being used on the recycling routes?

“Currently, we do not have electric vehicles operating the new recycling routes and, therefore, none are running out of battery power before finishing a round.

“We are using a mixed fleet of vehicles in line with the needs of the topography of the county.

“We are waiting for a delivery of service electric vehicles, and these will be allocated to places on appropriate routes to also support the service better when operational.”

England’s councils are scrapping this system – will Denbighshire’s do the same?

“We are aware that councils in England are going back to co-mingled bins. The council will not go back to this option as England is not leading in recycling.

“Wales is way ahead and is second in the world, compared to England, which is 11th. The rate of recycling in England was 43.4 per cent, and down on the previous year.

“Wales is aiming for 70 per cent and is the leading nation in the UK, and our new system will help us improve our rate to match the 70 per cent.

“Using the former blue bin also greatly increased the risk of cross-contamination of recyclables collected and this is why we also cannot go back to that system.

“We are grateful to all residents for their support for this service as the quality and quantity is exactly what is needed and the council wants to encourage this approach to continue while we move forward to bed the new service.”

“We are spending money to change the waste service because the environment is important. The new model will enable us to improve recycling rates, and the changes we have made will save the council money.”

How will the changes made save the council money?

“Recycling is separated at Denbigh now, meaning there is no external separating costs of waste collected.

“The recyclable material will be sold to others to turn it into products generating an income.

“Once bedded in, the new system will help us reach the 70 per cent Welsh Government target, avoiding substantial fines from them as we have currently sat at around 64 per cent for a number of years.

“The new system will clamp down on cross-contamination of recycling, which also reduces fines we may face.

“Although the annual saving to the council is a projection, and the actual saving will vary from year to year due to fluctuations in the value of recyclable material, the current (as of February 29) annual saving is estimated to be circa £450,000.

“However, the new recycling and non-recyclable waste collections service will be cheaper to run than the existing service, even after we consider the cost of the borrowing repayments. This makes it good value for money for the residents of Denbighshire.”