Story: Douglas Johnson
Big changes to bin collections in Burngreave will take place on Monday 13th August. Black bins will only be emptied once a fortnight instead of weekly. Blue bins and boxes will be emptied on the same day in the alternate weeks.
The other change allows residents to put paper and card in either the blue box or the blue wheelie bin. Plastic bottles, cans and glass cans go in the other blue container. Residents can choose. The main reason for the change is to save the Council £2.4 million to spend on other services but some people worry the changes will lead to overflowing and smelly bins and more problems with rubbish on the streets. Some streets in Burngreave already struggle with bins and people can’t get rid of excess rubbish. In some areas, very few people use the blue bins.
The Council plans to help with the change by writing to all households and following up with tags on the bins to give instructions for the new collections. Veolia will also have staff teams to knock on doors in areas where rubbish is a problem. The priority areas are yet to be decided.
Veolia’s helpline is 0114 273 4567. Residents can request help where they see the changes are causing a problem on their street. Residents can also request a second blue box to aid recycling. Only families of six people or those with medical waste can ask for a larger black bin. Elderly and disabled people who cannot manage to put their bins out can request an “assisted collection”.