Recycling in Angus has risen from 51% to 63% due to the reconfiguration of all seven Angus Council owned recycling centres, which has allowed them to accept the widest range of materials possible.
The council’s aim was also to deliver savings by increasing the amount they recycle, rather than by reducing the number of local facilities.
Customers have been directed to the three largest recycling centres to dispose of any non-recyclable general waste, where there is also space for a full range of recycling containers and where more staff were available to provide advice and direction.
The wider drive by people in Angus to recycle more has resulted in the county placing second out of 32 Scottish local authorities for household recycling.
The agreement that Angus Council has to send non-recyclable waste to a waste-from-energy facility in Dundee also means that Angus is one of the best in terms of not sending waste to landfill.
Due to their innovative approach to redesigning their recycling centres, Angus Council were recognised by winning the ‘Local Authority Success’ category at the National Recycling Awards in January.
The council was the only Scottish authority shortlisted for the UK award, which celebrates local authorities that have put in place an initiative to drive significant success in recycling, reuse or waste prevention performance, while offering public value for money.
On Angus’ successes, the judging panel said: “This is a council that bucked the trend and had the strength of mind to resist the obvious solution of cutting back, instead really reshaping its service to keep it open.”
Commenting, Angus Council’s Communities Convenor, Councillor Mark Salmond said: “We are thrilled to win the local authority success award. This is a massive achievement for the people of Angus who have been exceptional at recycling as much as they can when visiting our centres.
“I’m also delighted staff have been recognised for transforming our facilities to offer maximum recycling opportunities for our residents. The commitment from our recycling staff at our recycling centres is inspirational.”
Communities Vice Convenor, Councillor Tommy Stewart added: “To win this award is a fantastic recognition of the outstanding effort our residents make in respect of recycling.
“These changes resulted in significant increases in our recycling rate, while ensuring best use of council resources, equipment and staff. Angus is already one of the best places for recycling in Scotland, but we hope to do even better in the future.”
