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Brown Bins are coming to Letterkenny
04.06.14
This summer sees the
introduction of the ‘Brown Bin’ for household food
waste to the Letterkenny area. The new ‘Household
Food and Bio-Waste Regulations’, will come into
effect for Letterkenny from 1st July 2014. This
regulation will require all householders in the
Letterkenny area to separate their food waste and
make it available for conversion into compost.
Typically this requires householders to place both
cooked and uncooked food waste into a ‘Brown Bin’,
provided by your waste collector. |
These regulations apply
to Letterkenny in 2014 with the service also
becoming available to those in smaller urban centres
over the next two years.
“The purpose of the Regulation is to divert food
waste, which is biodegradable, away from landfill to
facilities which are authorised to treat it and turn
it into a high quality compost”, according to
Suzanne Bogan, Waste Awareness Officer with Donegal
County Council.
For the householder, this means that they must
separate their food waste and ensure that it is not
placed in the ‘black’ bin or disposal bin. |
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A ‘Brown’ bin, for food
waste, will be offered to all householders in
Letterkenny by their local waste collectors over the
next two months, but if for any reason, they are not
contacted, it is important that these individuals
contact their waste collector themselves to find out
what arrangements are in place for their area.
Households can continue to home compost fruit and
vegetable peelings in the garden but this method
will not suitable for food waste such as dairy
products, meat, poultry, fish, bones, leftover plate
scrapings etc.
Food waste that can be placed into the "Brown Bin"
will include:
- Meat, poultry, and fish, including bones
- Leftover food from plates and dishes
- Fruit and vegetables
- Tea bags, coffee grinds & paper filters
- Bread, cakes & biscuits
- Rice, pasta & cereals
- Dairy products, cheese, butter & yogurts
- Soups & sauces
- Eggs, egg shells, & cardboard egg boxes
- Food soiled napkins, paper towels
- Newspaper (when used for wrapping food waste)
- Out of date food with packaging removed (no glass
/ plastic).
“Under these regulations, those who place their food
waste in the residual ‘black’ bin or use a macerator
or other shredding device to dispose of food waste,
will be deemed to be in non-compliance with the
legislation and may result in court proceedings
which could lead to a maximum fine of €4000 upon
conviction”, according to Dearn McClintock, Waste
Regulations Officer with Donegal County Council.
“Donegal County Council is the enforcement body for
this legislation and will be active in making sure
that householders in the designated areas comply
with the legislation.
Anyone with queries on the introduction of the
service should contact either their own waste
collector or Donegal County Council's Environment
Section on 074 91 53900. More information can also
be found on
www.donegalcoco.ie or
www.brownbin.ie
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