Garden waste collection service off to a great start

18th May 2020

The Highland Council would like to remind Garden Waste Collection Service permit holders that the service resumed last Monday (11th May 2020) after being suspended due to the impact of COVID-19 on staff resources.

Carron McDiarmid, Executive Chief Officer for Communities and Place said: "Feedback from our crews from the first week of collections is that the quality of the material collected from the brown bins was excellent with very little contamination which is really positive and I would like to thank the public for making a concerted effort to ensure that only the correct material was put into their bins. In addition, the amount of garden waste collected in the first week was extremely high with the crews reporting that the majority of permit holders on the routes presented their bins for collection."

Garden waste permit holders are urged to check their collection day by checking on The Highland Council's website for their collection day- https://www.highland.gov.uk/directory/54/bin_calendars

To compensate customers for the 3-4 missed brown bin collections, the current permits have been extended for a period of 9 weeks beyond their expiry of the end of June and are now valid until the end of August 2020.

The brown bins must be presented with a valid permit and the bin lids fully closed, no extra side waste will be collected.

Crews are adopting safe distancing procedures due to the continuing threat of COVID-19. This may mean collections take longer to complete than usual so please put your bin out for 7.00am on your scheduled collection day. Collections may also be suspended at short notice if there are further circumstances outwith our control and customers are advised to regularly check the Council's website for updates.

As a reminder, the Garden Waste Collection Service is for the recycling of the following from your garden: grass cuttings, hedge trimmings, twigs and small branches, flowers, plants and weeds. Customers are asked to check the contents of their bin to ensure it contains no contamination. To help reduce the spread of Coronavirus the public should regularly clean their bin handles and lids as well as washing their hands before and after touching their bins.

At present it is not possible to purchase a Garden Waste Collection Service permit; we are working hard to get the permits back on sale and householders will be informed as soon possible when they are available for purchase.

To check for your collection date and view your calendar please see https://www.highland.gov.uk/directory/54/bin_calendars (external link)

Details of the Garden Waste Collection Service can be found here: www.highland.gov.uk/gardenwaste (external link)

For all enquiries about the service please e-mail recycle@highland.gov.uk