Cabinet approves plans to transform waste and recycling services in Cheshire West and Chester

Plans to transform waste and recycling services in west Cheshire have been given the green light by the Council’s Cabinet.

At its meeting on Wednesday 9 June, Cabinet members agreed to accept the recommendations of a report into the new Waste Management Strategy, which will make the service more sustainable, fairer and provide better value for money. 

The existing Waste Management Strategy is outdated and in need of modernisation. 

The new model will put a greater emphasis on reducing the amount of waste the borough produces and provide residents with more opportunities to recycle. 

It will help the borough respond to the challenges of Climate Change and support the Council’s target of making west Cheshire carbon neutral by 2045. 

The key changes approved by Cabinet today, include: 

• Household waste collected fortnightly using a 180 litre wheeled bin (as per the current arrangement). 
• Two larger capacity recycling bins on wheels collected fortnightly to replace existing 55-litre boxes.
• Food collections weekly using existing small food bin (as per the current arrangement).
• People will be supported with special arrangements if their housing circumstances make it more difficult to accommodate larger bins.
• A chargeable garden waste collection service to be provided over 40 weeks of the year, covering the growing season between March and November.
• The garden waste collections to continue fortnightly, in line with the frequency of the proposed kerbside collection service.
• There would be a charge of £40 per year per container for garden waste collections. This equates to £2 per collection and is in line with the current additional capacity charge.

The changes to the service would reduce carbon emissions by 220,000kg a year. 
The majority of local authorities across the country already charge for garden waste collections and revenue generated from the charges would help to fund vital Council services that people in the borough rely upon. 

The new service would also respond to residents’ concerns by removing the existing boxes that some people find difficult to carry and are easily damaged. 

The changes to the services would reduce carbon emissions by 220,000kg a year.

The recommendations in the Waste Management Strategy follow consultation with residents which took place earlier this year. 

More than 73 per cent of those who responded agreed with the Council’s key priorities to reduce waste, maximise recycling and deliver an efficient and cost-effective service.

Cheshire West and Chester Council’s Cabinet Member for Environment. Highways and Strategic Transport, Cllr Karen Shore said: “It is clear that our waste management system could better support our residents to reduce, reuse and recycle the waste we produce.”

“Our Waste Management Strategy needs to move with the times, recycling levels are good but there is room for improvement and we need to continue the conversations with our residents and work with them so we can all play our part to meet our Climate Emergency objectives.”

“We appreciate that introducing a choice-based system will be unpopular with some due the charging element but we have to balance this in the context of the budget challenges, the Climate Emergency and the other pressures the Council is facing.”

“Garden waste collection is a discretionary service and we will be introducing a choice-based system that people can opt into. "People may also choose to home compost or take their waste to the Household Waste Recycling Centres.”

Cllr Shore added: “Through the strategy we want to create a cleaner, safer borough and a more sustainable waste service for generations to come. We look forward to working with our residents to achieve this aim.”

The proposed new Waste Management Strategy will now move forward to be debated by the Full Council at its meeting on Thursday 15 July. If it is adopted, the changes will be introduced in 2022. 

For more information about the new Waste Management Strategy, visit:: 

https://www.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/residents/waste-and-recycling/waste-management-strategy.aspx