PLASTIC bottles can litter household waste bins no longer after council bosses provided new recycling banks at six extra sites in York.

In addition to the existing bank at the household waste site in Foss Islands Road, City of York Council has installed similar banks at half-a-dozen extra places.

B&Q in Hull Road, Tesco at Tadcaster Road and at Clifton Moor, Sainsbury's at Monks Cross and Beckfield Lane and Towthorpe Household Waste Recycling Centres will now also be able to take plastic bottles, in a move the council hopes will boost recycling rates.

The authority said it had recognised there was a "real desire to see plastic bottles recycled to reduce the impact on the environment".

The council also claimed the extra banks would help to ensure that "people have plenty of room in their grey bins as the new collection rota comes into effect when garden waste collections start early next month".

The Evening Press Bin It! campaign is opposed to the scrapping of weekly household refuse collections, but supports recycling iniativies.

From next week, 60,000 York households will see their household waste collected on a fortnightly basis, with green garden waste collected on alternate weeks.

The scheme will be suspended in the winter months between December and February when weekly collections will resume.

Meanwhile, plastics are now to be added to York doorstep collections next year after councillors agreed to lease five new refuse vehicles.

Councillors at City of York Council's urgency committee gave the thumbs-up to the project which, they say, will see plastics added to the green box collection for the 60,000 households on the alternate weekly scheme in March. Coun Andrew Waller, the council's environment chief, said: "These new vehicles will bring a great boost for recycling in York. The city will be among the first group of authorities to use these vehicles.

"We have seen huge numbers of people, who are recycling enthusiastically, calling for plastics to be added to their fortnightly kerbside collections. We hope that everyone will use this service, and that mountains of plastic will be diverted from landfill sites."

It's in the bag...

COUNCIL bin men should pick up extra black bags in York streets when fortnightly refuse collections start next week, according to a leading councillor.

In a motion to Tuesday's full City of York Council meeting, Coun Andy d'Agorne will ask the authority to relax the rules which refuse to accept additional side waste during the first two months of the new scheme.

His motion also requests that the collection arrangements are reviewed by February 2006 to decide "on a round-by-round basis" whether to reduce the green waste collection to monthly.

The council meeting is likely to be dominated by the changes in refuse collection, which are due to be launched next week.

The council is proposing to scrap the weekly refuse collections for 60,000 households. That waste will be collected every fortnight, with collections of green garden waste taking place in alternate weeks.

The Evening Press Bin It! campaign calls for the weekly refuse collection to be retained, while backing recycling initiatives.

Many residents and homeowners who have signed up to our petition fear fortnightly refuse collections will means swarms of flies and appalling odours as household waste overflows during the summer months.

Updated: 11:00 Thursday, September 29, 2005