‘Incredible’ recycling boost in Hackney following waste collection changes

Hackney has seen a jump in the amount of recycling being collected after fortnightly waste collections were introduced in March.

Thirty-two additional lorry loads are now being recycled instead of being sent to landfill per month from street-level properties, meaning that the borough’s overall recycling rate is now at 30.4 per cent.

The recycling rates of street-level properties affected by the changes to waste collection are up seven per cent to a total of 46.4 per cent.

Cllr Mete Coban, cabinet member for energy, waste, transport and public realm, said: “We’ve always been clear that this change was about increasing the amount we all recycle, so I’d like to congratulate Hackney residents on these incredible results – which is seeing more of Hackney’s waste recycled into something new. 

“We all have a duty to take care of our waste and recycling and I’m so proud of the vast majority of households that are doing so.”

The households with altered waste collection schedules were given 180-litre wheelie bins in March, with the instruction that all fortnightly waste headed to landfill must fit inside.

Door knockers visited 26,500 households in the borough in order to explain the changes and motivate affected residents to increase the amount that they recycled.

The council’s recycling behaviour change team also made 3,500 visits to households to offer support and information to those who needed it, including how to use food waste services.

As a result, an additional 190 tonnes of waste is now recycled rather than incinerated every month.

The council is now able to issue formal notices under the Environmental Protection Act to households who do not recycle what they can, or who do not store bins on their property. 

It can then issue community protection notices to landlords and households who still produce excessive waste or who are not recycling correctly.

Cllr Coban added: “We want to build on these changes, so, in addition to the doorknocking and visits we have completed in the last few months, we will start to issue notices to households that could be throwing away less waste and making more use of their unlimited recycling allowance.”