Recycling scheme for flats confirmed as recycling rates hit 50%

This makes Harrow one of the greenest boroughs in London - and there are plans to boost this figure even higher.

The Council bid for funding from the London Waste and Recycling Board, and was awarded £381,000, to provide recycling collections for the 8,000 flats in the borough that do not receive the service. This means every home in Harrow will be able to recycle by spring 2012.  

The Council will use the money to supply large blue bins for residents to dispose of recyclable waste including cans and tins, card, paper, glass bottles and jars, plastic bottles and containers.  

The plans were rubber-stamped at last night's Cabinet meeting. The scheme will start to roll-out later this month, and by the end of March 2012 everyone living in a flat will have access to recycling facilities.  

By the time all the bins are in place an estimated 1,500 tonnes of extra waste will be recycled a year, which is good news for the environment and council tax payers. 

Harrow Council pays £85 for each tonne of rubbish it sends to landfill, but recycling a tonne of waste costs significantly less, and in some instances can actually generate income for the Council.  

One of the borough's keenest recyclers Hilary Lock, of Welldon Crescent , said she was proud to have contributed to the borough's recycling success. She said: "It is fantastic news and I hope the new scheme for flats makes a difference, so we can continue to make progress.  

"I have recycled avidly since the bins were introduced by Harrow Council. The message about recycling is very clear; it is so important, and the bins make it so easy. I put more in my blue bin than my green bin; once you start to recycle you realise just how much can be recycled.  

"My advice to people about to join the recycling scheme would be to keep a small bin inside for your recyclable items; you can take this out to your main recycling bin. It is easy to forget what you can and cannot recycle, but I've always found the Council to be very helpful, so if you have any questions I would contact them." 

Portfolio Holder for Environment and Community Safety at Harrow Council, Cllr Phillip O'Dell, said:  

"To recycle half of our domestic waste is a great achievement and I'd like to say a big thank you to everyone who has helped us reach this important milestone.  

"As well as the obvious environmental benefits, there are real financial benefits to recycling. Few people think about the cost of processing waste when they put out their rubbish, but even with our impressive recycling rate, disposing of our waste will still cost us £5.6m this year.  

"I hope the extra recycling facilities for flats, being rolled out over the next year, mean we will soon be able to announce even better results."