Carmarthenshire Council is introducing a new 'Separated Recycling' programme on November 2, replacing the current blue bag system with multiple coloured sacks. The change has prompted complaints from residents about storage space and practical difficulties.
What is changing
Currently, residents put most waste into two main bags: a blue bag for recycled waste collected weekly, and a black bag for general waste collected every three weeks. Food waste is collected weekly, while glass bottles and jars can be put out in a box for collection every three weeks.
Under the new system, black bags (a maximum of three) will continue to be collected every three weeks, and food waste will continue to be collected once a week. Glass bottles and jars will now be collected weekly instead of every three weeks.
The main change is that residents must sort recyclable items themselves into different coloured bags or sacks, rather than placing all recyclables in a blue bag. The council will stop collecting recycling in single-use blue bags, starting with some homes and eventually rolling out to all areas.
New bags and sacks
Residents will use a reusable red sack for metals, plastics and cartons; a reusable orange sack for cardboard; a reusable blue sack for paper; a roll of red bags for plastic bags and wrapping; and a small reusable white sack for household batteries.
Residents have received or will receive a letter before the end of October confirming their collection arrangements and the date to begin using the new service. Those in eastern parts of the county will continue using the current blue bag system until 2027.
Resident reactions
The council says the new system will “help Wales achieve higher recycling rates” and is part of the Welsh Government’s ‘Collections Blueprint’, designed to increase the amount and quality of recycling collected on kerbsides.
However, many people have complained about the logistics, from storage space to empty reusable bags being blown all over streets in windy conditions. With the new system, recycling sacks placed on pavements will be emptied and then left for the resident to store for a week.
On social media, one person asked: “Where are people supposed to store all this from one week to the next?” One man suggested he’d need to “build an extension for all the additional bags”. Another posted that he’d be “better off opening the front door and launching waste in the air - if you live on a main road the draft from vans, wagons and buses will do the job for you”.
One woman said: “Priory Street and Richmond Terrace will be fun with the narrow pavements. Accident waiting to happen. The council has no common sense!”
Others were more supportive. One man said: “North Wales and Pembrokeshire have had this system for a very long time - get used to it.” Another person who has used the system for years wrote: “We’ve been using these (coloured sacks) in Pembrokeshire for a long time and it’s actually fine, you just get used to it.”
Council response
The council has pointed out that the majority of counties in Wales use a separated recycling system. Carmarthenshire will be the 19th out of 22 local authorities in Wales to introduce such a system.
The council has also said it could be fined - meaning potential consequences for council taxpayers - if it does not meet the Welsh Government's recycling targets.
Carmarthenshire Council’s cabinet member for transport, waste and infrastructure services, councillor Edward Thomas, said: “This is a significant change to the way many of our residents recycle at home, and we want to make the move to the new service as simple and straightforward as possible.
“We will be providing homes with their new recycling sacks and information before their new collections begin. It is important that residents look out for their letter in October, as this will confirm their start date and any changes to their collection day or week.
“By separating our recycling, we can improve the quality of the materials we collect, recycle more of our waste and help Carmarthenshire achieve its recycling targets. I would like to thank residents in advance for their support as we introduce the new service.”
All homes subject to the new collections will receive their new sacks and bags before the end of October. All residents, whether starting the new service next month or not, will receive letters outlining any changes to collection dates and how and when they should place their recycling and waste out for collection.
