"A huge amount of change" is coming to how Merseyside deals with household waste as authorities prepare to overhaul recycling across the region. People will soon be able to put more in their recycling bins as well as get a new weekly food waste collection collection.
Lesley Worswick, the Chief Executive of the Merseyside Recycling and Waste Authority (MRWA), gave councillors an update on their delivery plan for the Wirral and other parts of Merseyside. The plan before councillors at an October 20 Wirral Council environment committee meeting revealed more details about what will happen when food waste collections kick in for every household across England as well as other steps being taken.
St Helens Council currently provides food waste recycling but many Merseyside homes will be doing it for the first time under the new scheme. Councils across England will have to start recycling food waste by law from April 2026.
This isn't the only change coming to bin collections next year. People will also be able to recycle more items than before while film and carrier bags will be able to be recycled from April 2027.
Given Merseyside's poor recycling rates with some areas among the worst in the country, Ms Worswick said they were focused on improving things. Wirral's recycling rate is currently around 31% but this will need to be 65% by 2035.
She said there is "a huge amount of change impacting the world of waste at the moment [...] I mean it's a once in a generation change to waste," adding: "Society's throwaway culture has led us to the point where we've got significant amounts of waste we're having to deal with."
The MRWA said it was preparing to be ready for the collection of food waste and was in a really good place to have things up and running by next year.
The plan is for every household to be given two smaller bins called caddies to keep food waste secure until it can be collected. One will be kept inside the house while a second will be kept outside and put out for collection.
The delivery plan before councillors said waste firm Veolia will provide services to transfer, transport, and treat the food waste up until 2029. The food waste will be received at four sites at Bidston, Huyton, Southport, and Gillmoss.
Ms Worswick said councils could soon face a charge from 2028 after the government looks to introduce charges on the emissions created from burning waste while a deposit return scheme could be introduced in October 2027.
Similar deposit schemes run in a number of European cities with a success rate of 98% where people receive money in return for bringing bottles back, even if they didn't buy them. These schemes are seen as a way for reducing litter and increasing recycling rates.
Following a question from Cllr Allan Brame, Ms Worswick said they would be looking at improvements as part of any arrangement with a new contractor from 2029. In the meantime, she said the MRWA was working with Veolia to upgrade sites to recycle more waste from next year.
Councillors also pressed the MRWA on making recycling a priority and more action on reducing contamination. Council officers also said Merseyside would be able to from next April recycling hard plastics, tubs, trays, tetra packs, foil, and aerosols would be allowed in the grey bin and AI would be used to sort recycling.
However councillors also said the public needed to do more themselves, given the council's financial situation. Cllr Gail Jenkinson said: "We have to encourage residents where they can to take more responsibility and not just expect the council to do everything for them."
She said the public had to get on board because if the council got fined, council tax would potentially have to go up, adding: "If people aren't prepared to do it, they really should be ashamed they are putting that level of burden on their neighbours because it's not that hard to do."