May 2024

Latest news

Waste collections will be springing-forward in May

May bank holidays mean that there will be changes to waste collections at the beginning and end of the month. Next week there will be no collections on bank holiday Monday (6 May). Collections of recycling, rubbish and garden waste will be one day later than usual.

If your recycling and/or rubbish is usually collected on a Monday, then it will be collected on a Tuesday, if your usual day is a Tuesday it will be collected on a Wednesday and so on.

This includes collections that would usually take place on Friday, 10 May taking place on Saturday, 11 May.

The same will happen at the end of the month following the bank holiday on Monday, 27 May.

With waste collections a day later, a higher volume of waste is likely. Squashing, crushing and flattening waste can help to reduce the number of trips that teams need to make to empty their trucks, as well as creating more space in your boxes, bins and bags.

All 16 recycling sites will be open as usual at weekends, 9am to 4pm. And, if opening on a Monday is part of their normal opening pattern, they will be open on both Bank Holiday Mondays (6 May and 27 May), from 9am to 6pm. For opening times and to find a full list of what can be recycled head to our website.

Look out for your letter!

Households in the former Mendip and South Somerset areas with changes to their collection day, will receive a letter next week to explain what’s happening.

These changes have already happened in the east of the county and aim to make our collections more efficient and cost-effective, with reduced emissions; fewer trucks on the road and reduced mileage.

Not every household will be affected. If you don’t get a letter then your day will stay the same.

Garden waste subscription renewals

Many subscribers to our garden waste collection service will soon receive their renewal notice. However, there’s no need to wait for your notification as subscriptions can be renewed at any time for the following year.

The simplest way to renew your subscription is online, visit our garden waste collection webpage.

You can also follow the link to check when your subscription is due, or sign up as a new subscriber.

If you provide an email address, we’ll email you a renewal notice at least one month before your subscription ends.

Due to the high costs of postage and administration, we will be unable to post renewal notification letters to residents next year. We recommend making a note in your calendar or diary ahead of your garden waste subscription expiry date.

Reuse

Donate your unwanted tech to Fixy

There’s still time to donate your unwanted smart tech to Fixy! Over the next couple of months Fixy will be visiting:

Community groups gather to take Action for Somerset’s Future

'Action for Somerset's Future' is a free event – and open to all. The day will include panel discussions, workshops and the opportunity to connect with your local community over tea, coffee and cake!

Join leaders and experts in business, the public sector and communities to help develop Somerset’s Local Nature Recovery Strategy.

Our keynote speaker is Trewin Restorick, winner of the 2020 Global Leader of the Year award. Joining him are Cllr Dixie Darch, Executive Member for Environment and Climate at Somerset Council and Anita Roy, from Transition Town Wellington.

There will be plenty of opportunity for open discussion and participation in panel discussions and fun, interactive workshops.

This is a joint event hosted by CAG Somerset, Somerset CAN and Somerset Local Nature Partnership, the event is free but you must register to attend.

Get it sorted!

Gas canisters start fires!

Small gas canisters, like the ones used for camping stoves, cannot be recycled with your kerbside collection. This is because they pose a fire risk when going through the sorting process. All gas canisters should be taken to your local recycling site. Small canisters (camp stoves for example) can be disposed for free. Please speak to a member of staff on-site about where to put them.

Last year, gas canisters started six fires at our sorting facility – please help to stop this happening again.

Aerosols, such as deodorant or hair spray bottles can be recycled at the kerbside, just add to your blue bag (so long as they are empty). Full or part-used aerosols can be disposed for free at local recycling sites.

• Aerosols (deodorant, hairspray, etc.) contain a smaller amount of ignitable gas …and the bottles are under less pressure.
• Gas canisters are almost all gas …and it’s compressed at a high pressure, making it more likely to explode when crushed.