Bristol City Council has announced it is to give away 1,000 garden waste recycling bins free to local residents, waste-management-world.com reports.
The bins, which usually cost £21 each, will be given on a first come first served basis during the week of Monday October 1 – Friday October 5.
It is hoped that the free bins will increase garden waste recycling and help people keep their garden spaces clearer.
Residents wanting to obtain one of the free bins will have to phone the Council and give their debit card number in order to sign up to a garden waste collection.
As well as the bin, they will be given a free food waste caddy, a food recycling bin, plus a pack of corn starch liners in order to encourage more food waste recycling.
Liberal Democrat Councillor Gary Hopkins, who is in charge of the council’s waste services, told thisisbristol.co.uk that more garden waste recycling means less waste goes to a landfill, which benefits the environment and tax payers too.
He added: “Bristolians are really rising to the challenge of recycling, as they realize the more we recycle, the cheaper it is for the tax payer and the better it is for the future environment.”
The city’s recycling rate was at 50 per cent from April to June this year, compared to 39 per cent in the same period last year. In 2004, the city had a recycling rate of just 12 per cent.