NEW recycling collections - which have seen bins being picked up once every three weeks - have led to thousands more tonnes of plastic being recycled, it is estimated.

Somerset's Recycle More service has already delivered thousands of extra tonnes of recycling and proved extremely popular among residents using it, councillors heard this week.

Launched in Mendip in October last year and South Somerset at the end of June, it is estimated that the expanded weekly collections have produced more than 6,000 extra tonnes of recycling – including more than 1,000 tonnes of extra plastic.

Over the first 44 weeks, Mendip has seen an average weekly increase of more than 100 tonnes and week.

In the first 12 weeks in larger South Somerset, the average is estimated as being more than 130 extra tonnes a week.

And a customer survey in Mendip found 84% of respondents preferred their new Recycle More service to the previous recycling regime, an almost identical figure to the approval rating Recycle More received when it was trialled in Taunton Deane.

At the end of Recycle Week, on Friday (September 24), the latest recycling figures were discussed at a meeting of the 10 councillor who make up Somerset Waste Board, which governs Somerset Waste Partnership (SWP).

Board members heard about improved reliability of collections, the restart of garden waste collections and final preparations for bringing Recycle More to the Taunton Deane area this November.

SWP managing director, Mickey Green, said: “A huge effort has gone into launching Recycle More and we thank South Somerset and Mendip residents for the way they have embraced it.

“Our focus is now on bringing this exciting change to Taunton Deane, making it easier for everyone to recycle more.

“Well over 97% of what Somerset recycled last year stayed in the UK, including more than 99% of plastics.

"That’s a great achievement and something for Somerset to celebrate during Recycle Week.”

Recycle More adds the following to the weekly kerbside recycling collections:

• Plastic pots, tubs and trays

• Food and drink cartons

• Small batteries

• Small electrical items

Every home receives a new recycling container – a Bright Blue Bag and because more recycling means less rubbish, rubbish bins and bags are collected every three weeks.

After Taunton Deane, the new service is due to be rolled-out in Sedgemoor and West Somerset in early 2022.

The new service has been introduced area by area so SWP's five depots can be upgraded to handle thousands of tonnes of extra recycling.

For more information visit somersetwaste.gov.uk/recycle-more.