Argyll and Bute is one of only 11 councils across the UK which don’t collect garden waste, a new study has revealed.
While the UK Government has been consulting on whether households in England should receive free garden waste collections, analysis by the BBC’s shared data unit has found that some local authorities are charging up to £100 a year.
Critics say gardeners are ‘increasingly being punished’ and have described the charges as a “quiet green-garden tax which seems to go against every other positive environmental initiative that the UK is trying to promote”.
The UK Government says it believes that providing a regular kerbside collection service is the ‘best way to increase recycling of garden waste. It has asked for opinions on the possibility of all councils in England providing the service free of charge from 2023.
Less than 3% of councils across the UK do not collect garden waste.
In Scotland there are 32 local authorities, six of which do not currently offer a regular kerbside garden waste service – Aberdeenshire, Argyll and Bute, Dumfries and Galloway, Orkney Islands, Scottish Borders and Shetland Islands
Of the remaining 26 authorities, 20 do not have an annual charge (77%), while the average annual charge of the six councils which do charge is £32.
The highest Scottish charges are in Highland (£40), Moray (£36) and Midlothian (£35).
In March 2018 the issue was raised at Cove and Kilcreggan Community Council, with residents complaining that they had to make a round trip of nearly 40 miles to Helensburgh to dispose of garden waste.
This led an Argyll and Bute spokesperson to say: ““We are looking into the feasibility and financial viability of introducing a paid-for green waste kerbside collection service, and will report to committee on this later this year.”
This week there was no update from the council though, with a spokesman saying in response to the BBC study: “We do not currently offer a kerbside garden refuse collection service and instead, like other rural councils, provide facilities for garden refuse at our civic amenity sites.”
Cllr David Renard, environment spokesman for the Local Government Association, said: “Ultimately, garden waste collection has to be paid for by someone. It’s only fair that those households which have gardens and generate the waste pay for the service.
“This is why some councils charge for this as it’s not a universal service.”
“Collecting garden waste is not yet a statutory service. It is a matter for locally elected councils as to whether they charge for the service. It should be noted that the service is not free in councils that do not explicitly charge.
“Rather the cost is spread over the whole relevant population. The variation in cost will reflect local circumstances, such as geography.
“There is no obligation on residents to take the paid service. Home composting is cheaper and better for the environment.
“Compost made from garden waste offers consumers a locally-produced alternative to products made of unsustainable material such as peat, and can be used to improve brownfield or agricultural land. It does not generate any significant income for councils as it is a low-value product.
“The process of turning garden waste into compost is done by a third party at a cost to councils, which is much higher than any money raised from the sale of the end products.”
The BBC research separated the costs of garden waste collections where possible into the initial charge for a green bin, the annual cost of the service, and the overall total charge combining the two.
It shows that:
- Of the 368 local authorities in the UK which offer regular kerbside collections of domestic garden waste, 217 (59%) charge annually.
- The annual charge for the collection service ranges from £22 to £96. The average annual charge is £31.
- Eleven local authorities do not provide a garden waste collection service
- Some 100 local authorities (27%) provide a regular collection service free of charge
The most expensive garden waste collections are in the south east of England – £96 in Harlow, £85 in Adur and Worthing, and £80 in Lewisham.
The data was collected using information on local authority websites, or via emails/phone calls with local authority press offices
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