Witney News - Nets trial for recycling boxes

Nets trial for recycling boxes

Windproof nets which allow more items to be stored in recycling boxes are being trialled in West Oxfordshire by the District Council.

Around 300 households in Shilton Park, Carterton, will be using the nets instead of their usual plastic clip-on lids to cover their black recycling boxes.

The nets fit simply over householder’s existing boxes and can be tied at one end to prevent them from becoming detached during recycling collections. They will not blow off in the wind and recyclable items cannot escape from beneath them. The nets allow 20% extra space for recyclable items compared with plastic lids.

Households in Teasel Way, Trefoil Way, Bluebell Way, Ash Avenue and Elmhurst Way, Carterton, will receive the nets on Friday (August 15th) after the refuse and recycling collection, and the pilot scheme will get under way next week. It will last for six weeks.

Letters explaining the trial will be delivered with the nets, as well as a questionnaire for residents to complete. Feedback will help the Council assess the effectiveness of the nets. The Council’s Leader and seven other Cabinet Members will also take part in the trial at their homes.

Cllr David Harvey, Cabinet Member for Environment, said: “We are carrying out this trial to see if there is a more effective alternative to the plastic lids we currently use. These can sometimes blow away in the wind and this can lead to items being blown out of the boxes and onto the street. We are very grateful to residents taking part in the trial – their feedback will be extremely helpful in helping us to determine whether or not we roll this out to other areas in the District.”

More than 40 local authorities elsewhere in the country have introduced the nets instead of plastic lids in the past two to three years. West Oxfordshire is the first District in Oxfordshire to trial the nets.

For more information about the trial, contact the Council’s Street Scene team on 01993 861020. Further information about recycling in West Oxfordshire is available on the Council’s website, www.westoxon.gov.uk