Thanks to the efforts of Ceredigion’s residents and businesses, Ceredigion County Council has been one of the highest performing Local Authorities for recycling for a number of years. However, increasing Welsh Government recycling targets and the need to reduce costs mean that changes need be made to increase recycling further.
From April 2025, households will be limited to three bags of non-recyclable waste per 3-weekly collection cycle. Residents will also be unable to take unsorted “black bags” into all of the county’s Household Waste Sites.
“No unsorted waste” policies are in place elsewhere; this means that residents wanting to take residual waste into a household waste site are asked to sort through their waste and recycle anything that’s recyclable. This is being implemented at the site on the Glanyrafon Industrial Estate, Aberystwyth from 20 January 2025. Residents are advised to sort their waste at home before they visit any of Ceredigion’s Household Waste Sites.
The changes are designed to help incentivise residents to recycle more of their waste and help the County increase its recycling further.
Councillor Keith Henson, Cabinet Member for Highways and Environmental Services and Carbon Management said: “Despite the fantastic progress we’ve made over the years, through the recycling efforts by Ceredigion residents, there is still over half of the waste in “black bags” collected in Ceredigion that could have been recycled. This is a waste of natural resources and a cost to us all as residents. Change is never easy. I know that we all care about Ceredigion, and I know that our residents will understand the need for change. Reduce, reuse and recycle.”
In particular, the Council is trying to encourage more residents to use its weekly separate food waste collection service. The Council already collects around 3,400 tonnes of food waste each year which is recycled to produce a fertilizer and renewable energy, but the Council is focusing on trying to capture the 1,500 tonnes of food waste that is thought to end up in residents’ black bags annually.
