Bins, waste and recycling – frequently asked questions

It is council policy not to collect excess waste with any of the bins under any circumstances. This is to ensure that all residents receive a fair and equal service, and to safeguard the health and safety of the crews.

If you have extra waste or recycling it can be taken to one of the household recycling centres. Extra recycling can be taken to the community recycling centres found across North Lincolnshire.

Small electrical items can be placed in a carrier bag with your boxes for collection. Larger items such as microwaves, fridges, freezers or televisions can be taken to your local household recycling centre.

The facility where the materials from the burgundy bin are taken cannot recycle these items. Most large supermarkets now have recycling bins where plastic bags can be taken for recycling.

As a result of the changes in advice received on the treatment of food waste we are unable to accept fruit and vegetable waste in the brown bin. Regulatory agencies locally (Animal Health, Trading Standards) have determined that fruit and vegetable wastes processed within a domestic kitchen in which animal by-products have also been prepared, could be cross-contaminated and as such must now be subject to the same regulatory regime.

For more information please see GOV.UK – Guidance for the animal by-product industry.

No bags can go in the brown bin as they cannot be composted. Although biodegradable bags are available, the bags take too long to decompose, and they are more suited to be used in home composters.

Box lids are available at a cost, see our fees and charges. Lids should be removed when presenting your boxes for collection. To request a box lid please complete the replacement bins or boxes request form or contact the Customer Contact Centre.

Alternatively, visit your local Information, Advice and Guidance centre.

We request that the bins are returned to your property after collection as soon as you can. Do not leave your bin on the highway or pavement as it is an offence to obstruct the highway including pavements under the Highways Act 1980.

We have three tags:

Red tag

Oops! It means that you put wrong items in your recycling bin and your recycling was not collected. Please remove the wrong items and we will empty your bin next time. A full list of items that can or can’t be recycled can be found on our household recycling page.

Orange tag

Oops! It means that you put some wrong items into your recycling bin. Your bin was emptied this time, but we may not in the future if it contains the wrong items again. A full list of items that can or can’t be recycled can be found on our household recycling page.

Blue tag

Sorry, we were unable to empty your bin. Your bin was unsafe to empty because of one or more of the following reasons:

• the lid was raised
• it was too heavy
• the container is damaged or
• the contents were compacted or frozen

If the problem is corrected, then the bin will be emptied on the next scheduled collection day.

If your bin is too heavy the lifting arms on the truck will not be able to lift and empty the bin. The bin would split if it was lifted. Even if you are able to move the bin yourself, this does not mean that the vehicle is able to take the weight of the bin.

The council operates a flat lid policy which is designed to safeguard the health and safety of the collection vehicle crews. It is up to the discretion of the crew as to whether it is safe to empty.

If you have a fruit tree or grow your own produce you can place the fruit and vegetables in the brown bin, as they have not been within a domestic kitchen. Be aware that if the bin is too heavy – even if you are able to move it – it may be too heavy for the lifters on the vehicle and will not be emptied.

Residents are unable to place animal bedding or faeces in the brown bin, as it cannot be recycled at the facility where our brown bin material is taken to. Small amounts can be placed into your general bin and up to one bag can be taken to the Household Recycling Centre once a week.

If you have larger amounts you will need to arrange a collection with a private licensed disposal company or treat in a septic tank. As soiled animal bedding or faeces is classed as industrial waste, the council has no legal obligation to provide a collection. If we choose to we must fully recover costs for this service. We do currently provide an animal waste collection service, please contact our Commercial Waste Team for further information.

Advice on how to prevent maggots [PDF, 47Kb].

Yes please. We ask that residents rinse out all plastic bottles and containers for hygiene purposes. This will prevent smells developing.

Black plastic cannot be sorted by the machinery used at the recycling facility where our plastic material is taken. The majority of black plastic packaging is coloured using carbon black pigments which does not enable the packaging to be sorted by the optical sorting systems.

We can only collect cans and tins. You will need to recycle other metal items in scrap material at the household recycling centres.

We can only collect glass bottles and jars. Pyrex and crockery are a different type of glass and can’t be recycled at the facility which takes this material. These need to be placed in your general waste bin.