On 10 September Cornwall Council announced that it had achieved a recycling rate of 42% for the first time for the first quarter of 2018, which is 3% above its target for the period.
Only in 2016/17, the county sat at a recycling rate of just 34.6%.
There have been a number of factors attributed to the rise, including the increase of public focus on schemes run by the council.
Sue James, cabinet portfolio holder for the Environment and Public Protection said that: “Recycling is now more prominent in people’s minds and we know our residents value Cornwall as a beautiful place to live. We expect that a combination of these factors has generated a massive surge in awareness and demand for recycling bags.”
James added: “We apologise for the delay in getting these bags out to residents, but we did not anticipate such a massive increase in orders. It’s an encouraging sign that we will be able to boost recycling rates across Cornwall and we ask for people to be patient.
“We are out delivering recycling bags to households who ordered them as fast as possible but this is taking some time.”
Earlier in July Cornwall council began the procurement process for a new 10-year waste management contract worth £20 million per year.
The contract is set to begin in 2020 for waste and recycling collection, street and bleach cleansing services.
