Recycling contamination in Kent town costing taxpayer thousands
Residents in the Kent town of Swale are being urged to put the correct waste in the correct bins, as contamination is claimed to cost taxpayer "thousands".
New research by Swale Borough Council reveals Fridays recycling collections have had fifty rejected loads since April because of contamination.
According to the Council, it's estimated each discarded load costs an extra £2000.
That is because it costs "much more" to burn the waste.
The Council says: "If your recycling is contaminated, it won't be emptied and will be 'locked out'”.
It adds: "waste will only be collected at your next scheduled collection if the contamination has been removed.
The top four contaminants in Swale's recycling are found to be food, textiles, sanitary waste and black bin bags.
Food waste is said to be by far the "most common, and problematic, contaminator" and often leads to entire vehicle loads being discarded.
People whose collections take place on a Wednesday are found to have the lowest rates of contamination within Swale.
From April 2026 food waste services become compulsory across the nation.
Swale Council are promoting their free food waste caddy, which gets collected each week, in preparation for the change.
Cllr Dolley Wooster, chair of the council’s Environment and Climate Change Committee, said:
“As a borough we are seeing unacceptable levels of contamination in our recycling, and we all need to work together to sort this out.
“Using your bins correctly means plenty of space for your waste before the next collection, and if you are in doubt, then place it in the green refuse bin.
“With a free food waste caddy, you can keep your green bin cleaner and get it collected each week.
“Putting food waste into your recycling means more cost to the taxpayer and less recycling in Swale.
“If you put contamination in your bin the council won’t collect it, collecting it can end up ruining an entire load of recycling that other residents have taken time to do, which could have been made into new things for us to use.
“Together we can make a real difference, sending less to the incinerator - saving us and you money - and benefiting the planet by reusing valuable resources.”
People are being urged to check Swale Council's online tool to see what can or can’t go in your blue bin.