Changes are set to come to household waste collections in Penrith and Eden with blue bin bags replaced by wheeled bins with fortnightly collections and charges for garden waste as part of plans to harmonise Westmorland and Furness Council’s waste and recycling collections that will discussed and voted on at a meeting of the council’s Cabinet next week.
The Cabinet members will be asked to consider a series of recommendations to support a new harmonised waste and recycling service for the area when they next meet on 9th September at Barrow Town Hall.
A report to Cabinet sets out recommendations for the future operation of waste and recycling collections across the district that includes:
Any proposed changes to fees and charges would be presented for approval, as part of the budget report, to Full Council later this year.
Currently, Westmorland and Furness Council delivers 7.5 million collections annually to 117,000 households in one of the largest and most rural unitary local authority areas in the country, covering a geographic area of 1,500 square miles.
The Cabinet report explains that the creation of a new unified waste and recycling service is a priority for Westmorland and Furness Council, providing a service that is “cost and carbon efficient, that maximises the recovery and recycling of valuable natural resources, protects the environment and meets the needs and expectations of our residents.”
The report continues: “The harmonised service will support our communities to improve waste reduction, recycling and reuse, thus promoting a circular economy, achieving net zero, protecting our natural environment and supporting financial sustainability.
“We want to make it easier for people to do the right thing, especially against a background of a cost-of-living crisis, to maximise the use of resources and minimise their waste.’’
Recommendations for the changes follow a community engagement and consultation by the council over the past year with almost 3,000 people sharing their experiences of the current collection service at the end of last year, and more than 4,300 residents across the area sharing their views in a recent options consultation over the summer.
Alongside this, the council also ran pilot trials of different collection methods and container types in Ulverston and Penrith, giving residents in the trial areas the opportunity to try out changes and share their experiences.
Subject to Cabinet approval, the first changes under the harmonisation programme would be expected to begin rolling out in the next few months.
A council spokesperson said “While a new harmonised waste service would bring long-term benefits, these changes wouldn’t take place all at once.”
“The introduction of new systems, vehicles and collection arrangements would be a complex process that would be rolled out gradually over a period of years.”
“This phased approach would ensure services are reliable, sustainable and tailored to meet the needs of residents, while allowing time for teams and communities to adapt smoothly to any new arrangements”.
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