Everything you need to know about Portsmouth's new bin rules

Portsmouth residents will soon have to adjust to a series of new rules for waste collection.
Wheelie bins will be introduced across Portsmouth. Picture: Stephen CurtisWheelie bins will be introduced across Portsmouth. Picture: Stephen Curtis
Wheelie bins will be introduced across Portsmouth. Picture: Stephen Curtis

The council will be introducing wheelie bins across the city in a bid to reduce the amount of rubbish collected and cut back on costs.

Councillors voted in favour of introducing the new rules at the environment and community safety meeting last night, and they will be implemented across the city later this year.

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Wheelie bins will be introduced across Portsmouth. Picture: Stephen CurtisWheelie bins will be introduced across Portsmouth. Picture: Stephen Curtis
Wheelie bins will be introduced across Portsmouth. Picture: Stephen Curtis
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If you are confused about the changes, we have rounded up all the information you need to know about Portsmouth’s new bin rules here:

What is changing?

Portsmouth City Council will issue residents across the city with new wheelie bins for waste collection, instead of residents leaving bin bags out for collection - if they didn’t receive a wheelie bin during a previous trial.

The wheelie bins will have a 140 litre capacity - which the council says is similar to the amount of rubbish that can be put in three standard bin liners - but the council will only collect the wheelie bins and no other extra waste.

For residents living in flat-fronted homes that are likely to have difficulty storing a new bin, they will be allowed to put out three bin bags for collection.

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The current recycling rules will remain the same - with collections carried out every other week.

Who will be affected by the changes?

The new bin rules will be implemented across Portsmouth, so if you live in the jurisdiction of Portsmouth City Council then you will be affected.

Will you have to pay for the wheelie bins?

No - residents don’t have to go out and buy their own wheelie bins, the council will be using them - so technically speaking your council tax will be paying for the wheelie bins.

The council has secured funding for 50,000 wheeled bins, additional lifters for the open back fleet and an additional vehicle and crew to accommodate changes to rounds.

Are the weekly collections continuing?

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Yes, the council will continue to collect normal waste every week and recycling every two weeks. With the wheelie bins or three bin bags, if you live in a flat-fronted home, being collected weekly.

Will there be exceptions?

Portsmouth City Council say that households who regularly exceed the standard capacity of a 140 litres aweek for refuse can apply for additional capacity (larger bin or additional bag allowance), but to secure this, they need to demonstrate that they are recycling fully within the recycling scheme offered by the council.

There will also be an option for residents to purchase a limited amount of additional capacity for occasional additional waste.

Also at Christmas households will be allowed to have extra rubbish collected because this is when waste amounts are likely to be higher.

Why are the changes being made?

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Portsmouth City Council says that it spends around £9m a year on refuse collection and disposal and in order to keep running the weekly collections in the face of cuts to government funding they need to reduce costs - with the only way to do this being by reducing the amount of rubbish that is being disposed of.

Portsmouth has one of the lowest recycling rates in the country and is currently 340th out of 350 local authorities with a recycling rate of just 24.7 per cent in 2015/16.

The city also has the highest kg waste per household in the county at 654.83kg per household a year - which is the equivalent of three baby elephants.

When will the changes come into place?

The council is planning to roll out the wheelie bins, and three bin bags, to households across the city by the start of December this year - with the full schedule being published online as it is finalised.

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Portsmouth residents will also be receiving an information pack from the council at the time of implementation of the bin changes.

A series of trials testing out wheelie bin collections were carried out across the city last year.

What happened during the trials?

The council carried out seven waste trials, five of which were for wheelie bins - these were carried out in Cosham, Paulsgrove, Hilsea, North End and Southsea.

Residents in the trial areas were issued a 140l wheelie bin and the council found that waste reduced significantly - with the reductions raging from 11 per cent to 21 per cent.

Recycling also mainly increased in the trial areas.

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Before and during the trials, the Highways PFI team monitored the street cleansing. They have reported back that in the wheelie bin trials there has been a small improvement in street cleanliness.

For the flat-fronted homes, the council ran two separate trials - one with reusable bin bags and another with three bin bags - in Fratton.

The council decided on the three bin bags, over the reusable 140l sack reusable sacks being left out almost permanently in some areas attracting other people’s bags and subject to the attentions of vermin. Increased fly tipping/domestic dumping was an issue although this was dealt with via an education and enforcement approach.

The News reported last year that angry residents said the streets were ‘dirtier than ever’ with ‘rotten food and babies’ nappies everywhere’