Wiltshire Council is considering major changes to its recycling bin collections across the county.

Residents could be asked to change the way they sort their recycling in the coming years after an overhaul of the current arrangement was recommended.

The council’s waste service has proposed cabinet adopts a “three stream” collection service when its current contracts end in 2026.

If approved, households would sort their rubbish into a wheeled bin or weighted sack for paper and cardboard, a second bin or sack for plastics, cans, cartons, and bagged flexible plastics, and a box for glass, from 2027.

Currently most residents use a blue-lidded wheeled bin for mixed recycling and a box for glass.

The alternative option is to retain this approach, but the council believes a new system could cut costs and improve efficiency.

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A decision on these changes will be made at a meeting on Tuesday, November 19.

The proposal comes after “extensive research” to allow the council to comply with new statutory requirements under the Environment Act 2021.

Cllr Dominic Muns, cabinet member for waste, said: “Any potential change that affects all households in the county cannot be done lightly and that’s why we’ve carried out an extensive level of due diligence to ensure the options we’re considering are the right ones.

“Our focus is to ensure that we give residents the very best opportunities to recycle as much as possible from the kerbside, that we meet all our obligations as set out in the Environment Act and that these services are financially sustainable.

Cllr Muns emphasised any changes will not impact residents for a few years, with the decision being taken now to allow the council to start looking for potential service providers.

He added: “Once a decision has been made on our preferred approach, this will allow us to start engaging with prospective service providers to explore contract arrangements.

“Together with all other local authorities, we are awaiting further clarification on certain aspects of the Environment Act and when that comes through that too may impact our plans.

“It’s important to note that making this decision will just be the first step, and that residents will not see any changes to their collections for a few years. We’ll keep people updated as this process continues.”

Across the 2023/24 financial year, the council recycled, reused, or composted 43.7 per cent of the household waste across Wiltshire.

The council has agreed to begin collecting food waste from August 2027 and flexible plastics by April 2027 to meet regulations.