Refuse collections, Waste and Recycling
Rubbish is collected from Fairfield on Tuesdays. Food waste is collected every week. The green bin (recycled waste) and bagged garden waste are collected one week, with the black bin (non-recycled, landfill waste) collected on the alternate week. A glass collection point is located outside Tescos.
What goes where?
To find out which bin to use for what materials, take a look at the ‘What waste goes where’ leaflet (click here) which clearly shows what can and can’t go in each container. It also lists the key Household Waste Recycling Centres in our area as well as a comprehensive list of local “bring” banks for textiles.
Which date for what?
To find out which date is applicable collection calendars are available to download (click here). You will need to select a link from the alphabetical road names list for the first letter of your road name, next to your road name you will find your collection day and a calendar number, this will let you know which calendar to download.
Every penny counts at Central Bedfordshire Council and managing our waste effectively is a real priority. By reducing the amount of waste we produce and recycling more, we save money on landfill tax and avoid the possibility of fines in the future.
Central Bedfordshire has one of the most enlightened approaches to recycling of many authorities. The argument for recycling is compelling. As a country we are rapidly running out of landfill sites and the charges to use them are escalating.
So Why Recycle? – The Shocking facts
Recycling:
- Reduces the demand for raw materials
- Reduces the impact of raw material extraction and transportation
- Reduces the amount of waste sent to landfill
Scientists have studied solid waste disposed of in landfill since early 1970’s. Some kinds of organic waste biodegrade (the rotting process) for a while and then the process slows down or stops. For other kinds, it never starts to break down at all.
Here are some examples of estimates on how long it takes for materials to decompose in landfill sites. Importantly, most of the materials listed could be reused or recycled:
Paper 1 month
Banana Skins 3-5 weeks
Leaves 1 – 3 months
Cotton Rag 5 months
Orange Peel 6 months
Wool Sock 1 year
Cigarette Butt 2 – 5 years
Plastic Bag 20 years
Leather Boot 40 – 50 years
Plastic Container 50 – 80 years
Steel Can 100 years
Aluminium can 200 – 500 years
PlasticBottle 450 years
Disposable Nappies 500 years
Glass Bottle never
Polystyrene never
Next time you boil a kettle the electricity might just becoming from your food waste! That is one of the interesting facts from our waste when it is recycled from the kerbside recycling scheme. The waste is taken to a recycling facility where it is fed along a conveyor belt and hand or machine sorted into different materials. They are then baled and sent onto re-processors who are specialists in recycling waste materials into new items. So what happens then?
Material Recycled Products
Aluminium New cans, aeroplanes
Steel New cans, ships, car parts
Plastic Bottles Fleece jackets, watering cans, compost bins and water butts!
Paper New newspapers, magazines
Thin cardboard New cardboard boxes
Food waste – Biogen
Once collected, your food waste is taken to BIOGEN’s Anaerobic Digestion facility, near Bedford. It is here that it is mixed with pig slurry from the adjacent farm, and the mixture is then heated to a high temperature to remove any bacteria and to make it safe. The mixture is then placed into a temperature controlled sealed vessel where it breaks down and the gases produced are collected.
The finished product can be used as a soil conditioner for general agricultural purposes – to grow more crops, vegetables and fruit! This process also produces gases that are used to generate electricity that is fed into the national grid.
For more information about recycling and waste collections, including bulk waste collections and clinical waste visit the waste and recycling section of the Central Bedfordshire Website (www.centralbedfordshire.go.uk)