Concerns over the possibility of having two recycling bins in North Yorkshire have been raised after residents raised worries about storing the new bins and a change to the current system. 

Under proposals from North Yorkshire Council, households will have two wheelie bins for recycling – one for glass, cans and plastic, and one for paper and card, with alternate fortnightly collections.

Across the county, about 310,000 tonnes of household waste is collected each year from more than 300,000 properties. 

The formation of North Yorkshire Council brought together seven different ways of collecting household waste and recycling, which was the role of the district and borough councils.

As part of the proposals, North Yorkshire Council say that it is "striving to be more efficient and cost-effective" by encouraging residents to reduce household waste and increase recycling, as well as ensuring everyone receives the same recycling collection service.

A consultation on the plans, which ended on Monday (September 16) sparked more than 8,000 responses and 50 comments on the North Yorkshire Council website. 

Recycling in North YorkshireRecycling in North Yorkshire (Image: NORTH YORKSHIRE COUNCIL) It's expected that a decision will now be made on the recycling bins in the near future. 

No date on the decision has yet been set.

Among those responses in the consultation, people's concerns about having enough room to store the new bins and put them all out next to their properties were up there with the top worries. 

Alongside these concerns, other people worried whether fortnightly collections for different types of recycling would be enough. 

According to the council 'Two wheelie bins would provide residents with maximum capacity to recycle as much material as they can, as well as reduce any material being scattered on the street from either the wind or wildlife on collection day.'

Under the proposed plans, the collection of non-recyclable rubbish will remain the same as it is now, and residents can also opt-in for garden waste collections.

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This would mean most households have a total of either three or four wheelie bins.

Executive member for managing our environment, Cllr Greg White, said: “The changes would mean residents have the capacity to recycle more, and it would also provide the best value for money, as high-quality, clean recyclable material is worth more to manufacturers.

“By reducing waste and increasing our recycling, we can also help to conserve our natural resources, protect the environment, save energy, and support our ambitions of becoming carbon negative.”