In a move to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill sites, The Highland Council has altered its free Bulky Uplift policy so that from the beginning of July 2008 black bag waste will be removed from the list of approved items for these pre-arranged collections.
Currently the free uplifting service can be booked to remove any article of household waste which cannot fit into a normal domestic bin, any item which weighs over 25kg and up to 10 black bags. Council staff advised members of the TEC Services Committee that in the majority of cases the black bags collected contained waste which would be suitable for either composting or recycling.
Chairman of TEC Services Committee, Councillor John Laing said: "We have introduced significant opportunities for people to recycle their waste from the kerbside collection service, to our recycling centres, recycling points and even the special offers on home composting bins. A lot of bulky waste put into black bags can be recycled so we are asking people to be more aware of how they dispose of their waste. I would like to stress that the uplifts are for household waste only and does not include the collection of baths, doors, kitchen units, building construction, alteration, repair or demolition waste."
Anyone requiring advice on where to take items for recycling can contact The Highland Council's Waste Awareness team on 01349 86843 or look up information on the Council's website ~ www.highland.gov.uk/recycling
The response time for a free bulky uplift is normally within a week. To arrange a collection householders should contact their local Service Point.