Waste and recycling during Coronavirus

Our refuse and recycling teams are working hard to collect your waste during this time. Here are some things you can do to help:

• Minimise the amount of rubbish, recycling and food waste you produce. Every bit we can reduce will make a real difference to maintaining a good collection service for everyone
• Don’t stop recycling. With the global economy disrupted, it’s more important than ever to recycle your paper, card, plastic, cans and glass to ensure that valuable resources are recycled and made into new products for people to buy
• Please park your car responsibly. Many more people are at home, and parked cars are restricting access to bins for our collection crews, making their job more difficult and increasing the likelihood that bins cannot be emptied
• Do not burn any of your waste. This creates air pollution that could harm people nearby who may already have breathing difficulties. There is also the danger the fire could get out of hand at a time when emergency services are already extremely stretched

When putting out your bins, there are a few things you can do to ensure you’re doing this as safely as possible:

• If you’re self-isolating and feeling unwell, double-bag your personal waste (such as tissues) and put aside for at least 72 hours (3 days) before putting them out for collection.
• Tissues, wipes, cloths, gloves, masks etc. cannot be recycled. Please put these into a bag and then in your black bin
• Put out your bins by 6:30am on your collection day
• Disinfect your bin handles before and after you touch them and before and after they are emptied
• Wash your hands thoroughly after handling and disinfecting bins
• Keep your distance when our workers are collecting your waste and recycling – but please give them a wave to show your appreciation

Keep those in your household safe. Your collections staff are key workers, please keep them safe too.

For the latest information on COVID-19, please visit www.gov.uk/coronavirus

Last updated Thursday, 7th October 2021