Wheelie bins set for the isles

Orkney Islands Council today approved measures to make recycling easier for people in the North and South Isles.

As a first step, the council will offer to provide two wheelie bins per household in the isles.

These can be used to store items for recycling – as well as being a secure place to keep bags of household waste.

Many of the isles have recycling collection points. A programme of work to upgrade and increase their storage capacity is underway. Five of the isles have already had their storage capacity doubled – and this work will continue.

The council will also explore ways to provide recycling facilities in Egilsay, Wyre and Graemsay, which currently do not have collection points.

Meanwhile, an alternate weekly collection will continue in Westray and Shapinsay, where it was trialled before being rolled out in Orkney Mainland, Burray and South Ronaldsay.

“We did look at providing similar arrangements in the other isles,” said Councillor James Stockan, chairman of the council’s development and infrastructure committee.

“But it would have been a complex and costly process, with each of the islands having different logistical challenges to overcome if we were to operate an alternate weekly collection. The option we agreed today is more cost effective – an important consideration in the current financial climate.

“We believe it will result in a rise in the amount of material we see recycled in the isles, by making it easier for people to store items and increasing the capacity at their local recycling collection points.

“We were keen to see residents in Graemsay, Egilsay and Wyre provided with recycling facilities. I am very pleased that this this will now be explored in greater detail to see what practical options there might be.”

Darren Richardson, the council’s head of infrastructure, added: “We consulted with residents in the North and South Isles through face-to-face meetings and a postal survey. People were keen for the council to support ways to make it easier to recycle items, reducing the amount of household waste collected in the isles.

“Providing bins will be a good way to help residents store recyclable items before taking them to their local collection point. They can also be used to store bags of waste, protecting them from vermin and the wind in between the weekly roadside collections. In Orkney Mainland, surveys have shown that concerns about vermin and litter have decreased substantially since households were supplied with wheelie bins.”

The council’s environmental services team will be contacting isles residents over the weeks ahead with information about how to request up to two storage bins per household.