Falkirk Council announce changes to black box collection
Falkirk residents are being reminded that only glass bottles and jars should be put in ‘black boxes’ for kerbside collection from October 1.
Billboards across the district are just part of a campaign to get the message across that the boxes can no longer be used for small electricals, batteries or textiles.
Falkirk Council agreed to stop collecting these as a very small amount were being recycled and making kerbside collections for glass only is more cost-effective.
However, residents are still urged to recycle small electricals and not send them to join the incredible 471 million items that end up in UK landfill each year.
People should take ‘anything with a plug, battery or cable’ to retailers – including Curry’s, B&Q and Tesco – who will make sure it is recycled, whether you bought it there or not, as part of the ‘retailer take-back scheme’.
They can also be disposed of at Falkirk Council’s recycling centres at Roughmute and Kinneil Kerse.
Small electricals, such as headphones, decorative lights and even vapes, include valuable materials such as copper, lithium, stainless steel, gold and more.
Falkirk Council had initially intended to stop glass collections altogether since the Scottish Government’s deposit return scheme for single-use drinks containers should have been introduced by now.
But arguments over the plans have meant delays of years, while there is also a strong possibility that a UK-wide scheme will not include glass at all.
For more details, visit Falkirk Council’s website or recycleyourelectricals.org.uk.