How well is your waste segregated? Are the waste collection bins or containers the right sizes? Can they be accessed easily? Which waste fractions should be disposed of where? These questions are usually asked by citizens or are issues that impact them directly and they seek answers from the waste organisations in charge of waste management.
The first step for your municipality is to understand if the separate waste collection system that you have in place works well – and, if not, to identify its weaknesses and how it could be improved. This is the starting point to define an effective waste collection strategy. The first measure could be to improve the labelling of bins and containers so the citizens are better aware of what waste fraction goes where. A visual check of the condition of the waste containers and how full they are during collection rounds can also provide useful information to improve the efficiency. This is applicable both to kerbside/door-to-door collection as well as street containers. The next step is to conduct a composition analysis of the mixed waste stream, i.e. the stream that is supposed to include all waste that is not separately collected in the other recyclables fractions. The composition analysis allows to ascertain the exact amounts of recyclables and organic waste in the total waste that are not captured by the separate collection system. If these amounts are significant, it means that the separate collection system is not working effectively. For instance, if there is a large amount of glass in the residual waste stream, it may mean that it is difficult for citizens to access the glass recycling points, or that the containers are not of the suitable size. After checking the actual reasons, the location of the street containers could be reconsidered and criteria such as the distance from sites that generate large amounts of glass waste could be taken into account.
And how can you improve the efficiency of your separate waste collection? How often should the different waste fractions be collected?
A high level of separate waste collection can be achieved applying an effective kerbside/door-to-door collection system combined with the integration of a pay-as-you-throw system. In many cases, municipalities with high separate waste collection rates collect the food waste stream and the recyclable fractions more than once a week, depending on the climate, and the mixed waste stream significantly less often, supporting that this becomes the least important in terms of volume. These high rates of separate collection are also supported by the establishment of civic amenity sites where citizens can bring all other types of waste, such as bulky waste, waste electrical and electronic equipment, paints, etc.
How should the features of the separate waste collection system be communicated to the residents?
Do you communicate clearly and regularly with residents about what they have to do with their waste?
Your municipality needs to set up a communication strategy in order to effectively encourage waste prevention and reuse and recycling behaviour in citizens. It is really important for citizens to receive clear, consistent and regular messages about what happens to their waste when it leaves their home and about the fate of each waste stream. The aim is to engage residents and make them trust the waste management system.
Additionally, citizens need to know what waste management services are available to them, the collection schedule and the requirements of the services. For instance, it is essential to communicate to the citizens which waste fractions go in which containers and what materials are accepted within each waste fraction.