Maidenhead & Windsor

Maidenhead Royal Borough residents are being urged to "box clever" with their household waste.

Since the new Maidenhead recycling scheme started last autumn local people have been driving up the recycling figures by getting switched on to the new purple boxes, with recycling increased from 207 tonnes a week to around 283 tonnes.

The Maidenhead borough is now recycling almost 30% of its household waste but the message is "we can do even better" and the call has gone out to residents to cotton on to the colour code:

* PURPLE boxes for glass bottles and jars plus cans and plastic bottles and
* BLACK boxes for newspaper, paper and cardboard only.

Larry Wolfe, Maidenhead public protection manager, said he was very encouraged by the enthusiasm of many residents for the increased recycling opportunities – but there is still some confusion about what recycling goes where!

He explained: "The result is that in some instances materials have been mixed together or not put in the correct boxes – and unfortunately they are then not acceptable for the recycling process and our contractors can't take them away. That's why we are keen to press home the colour code reminder so that residents who have made the effort to recycle won't be disappointed".

"Since the introduction of the purple boxes, recycling has increased from 207 tonnes a week to around 283 tonnes. However, the message is ‘we can do even better' and we are confident residents will soon cotton on to the colour code."

The recycling changes are part of major improvements to the waste collection service which will not only increase recycling but also reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill – and as a result help save council taxpayers' money.

The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead