EARLY signs indicate that there has been a big increase in the amount of waste being recycled in a Teesside town.

Hartlepool Borough Council recently issued new grey bins to 42,000 homes in the town for recycling purposes.

And in the first four weeks of the new scheme 590,000 tonnes of recycling waste has been collected compared to 490,000 tonnes for the same period last year.

The grey bins have replaced the old white poly bags and blue bags. Households have retained their blue boxes, brown bins and green bins.

Residents are being asked to ensure that they put waste in the correct recycling container.

Paper, cardboard, plastic bottles, aluminium foil, drinks cartons and food and drink cans should all be placed unwrapped in the grey bin.

Glass bottles and jars should go in the blue box while residents’ brown bins continue to be used for garden waste. People should put all non-recyclable waste as well as items such as broken glass, pet waste, nappies and food waste in their green bins.

More information on what can and cannot be recycled can be found on the Council’s website at www.hartlepool.gov.uk/recycle