Monday 13 July 2009

‘GET IT OUT FOR CARDIFF’ REMOVES 300 TONNES OF WASTE


With over 300 tonnes of waste removed from student areas of the city, the ‘Get it Out for Cardiff’ Initiative has recycled and composted approximately 90 tonnes of waste.

Charity collections were arranged at 20 student halls of residences across the city. Two tonnes of reusable clothes and textiles have been recovered, with charity bins in place for the rest of the summer.

The scheme involved an education and marketing drive to publicise extra waste collections in Cathays, Plasnewydd and parts of Gabalfa so students could dispose of their waste responsibly before they left the city for the summer holidays.

Councillor Margaret Jones, Executive Member for Environment at Cardiff Council, said: ‘This scheme has been running for 5 years now and extra collections are strategically chosen to coincide with the Leavers Ball and when tenancy agreements finish at the end of June’.

‘The recycling and composting rate of approximately 30% is encouraging and by removing waste that has accumulated over the year in a controlled way, we can ensure these areas remain clean and tidy for other residents living in them.’

Kieran McCann, Student Liaison Officer working in partnership with Cardiff Council, Cardiff, UWIC and Glamorgan Universities, said: ‘By engaging directly with the universities and student unions to ensure that the majority of students are aware of the scheme, the Get it Out for Cardiff scheme has been a success this year’.

‘The Salvation Army is still providing a recycling collection for clothes, shoes, bags, belts, bedding and textiles in student Halls of Residences throughout the summer months, so it is expected that the recycling rate for the scheme will increase further.’

Diane Blackmore General Manager at Liberty Living whose student halls house students from all three universities and participated in the charity collection said:

‘Our students have wholeheartedly backed this successful initiative, helping donate over two tonnes of clothing to the Salvation Army. This is our first year supporting Get it Out which has been exciting for our students and the team at Liberty Living. We look forward to our involvement and participation next year’

Lee Cecil, Wales’s representative for the National Landlord Association and Chair of the Landlords Forum in Cardiff, said: ‘As a partnership, we will continue to educate landlords about Council services, to ensure tenants are aware of their waste recycling collection day.”

Keep Cardiff Tidy will also be engaging directly with letting agents, so that waste collection calendars and information on other council services are given to tenants at the start of their tenancy. There is a quick turn around of tenants in student areas, so educating landlords and letting agents about waste collection days is key to keeping these areas clean and tidy.