The second phase of an innovative waste weighing project will go live across 4,200 households in North Lanarkshire this month.
Initially launched last September, the first phase of the project involving Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology was rolled out across 700 residences in Cumbernauld. RFID tags were fitted on household waste and recycling bins in the initial trial area to enable the project team to better understand how the residual waste and recycling services are performing.
The data from phase one, which is currently being assessed, will help the council identify potential service improvements and efficiencies across a number of areas including route planning and vehicle emissions.
The first trial of its kind in Scotland, the project is funded by Zero Waste Scotland and delivered in partnership with the council with the aim of improving local recycling rates.
Phase two of the trial will cover around 4,200 households across Cumbernauld, Mollinsburn and Moodiesburn.
2019 figures published by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) showed North Lanarkshire residents recycled just over 40% of their household waste. The waste weighing trial will contribute to the council’s aim of raising that figure to 70% by 2025, and support the Scottish Government’s ambition of ending Scotland’s contribution to climate change by 2045 and the council’s ambition of achieving net zero by 2030.
Convener of Environment and Transportation Committee, Michael McPake, said: “We would like to thank all the residents who took part in phase one of this innovative trial which is being funded by Zero Waste Scotland. This has enabled the council to gather data which we are in the process of analysing to determine how we can best improve the efficiency of our waste services, reduce expenditure and increase recycling rates across North Lanarkshire.”
Ray Georgeson, Head of Resource Management, Zero Waste Scotland, said: “We’re delighted with the level of participation in the initial phase of this innovative RFID trial and excited about rolling out phase two which will involve the wider community in and around Cumbernauld.
“As we saw in phase one, bin collection services will remain unaffected by this project where all the focus is on understanding service performance and the impact of campaigns and interventions to support household waste reduction. Extending the trial to involve more households will give us even better data to support the development of effective solutions to increase local recycling rates.”