Waste figures show impact of end of term

A final tally of rubbish collected as students left the city at the end of term shows the impact the changeover period has on council services.

Between 11 June and 8 July the council collected and removed a total of 330.72 tonnes of waste in Headingley, Hyde Park, Woodhouse, Kirkstall and Weetwood.

As student tenancies came to an end, the council took a proactive approach to bin collections in the predominantly student areas with bin crews teaming up with street cleaning crews.

Working together, the crews ensured bins were wheeled out for collection and emptied more regularly. By creating space in bins the council aimed to prevent waste accumulating on the streets.

Street cleaning crews quickly removed any furniture, household items or rubbish that had been left out with and in between collections to keep on top of issues.

In one area, crews had to return six times within 10 days to empty bins due to the sheer amount of waste left out.

Councillor Mark Dobson, executive member for the environmental protection and community safety, said:

“The end of university term can be a challenging time for our bin and street cleaning crews who are faced with an incredible amount of waste in a very short space of time.

“Each year we look at different ways to keep ahead of the game and plan in extra resources to create capacity in bins for those last minute clear-outs.

“While we’ve been able to keep on top of issues this year, there’s no denying that there were problematic areas so we’re already looking ahead to next year to see how we can best deal with the peaks of waste more effectively.

“The support from universities, student unions and students themselves is always appreciated. However, when problems arise we will act swiftly to deal with them.”

The extra resources put in by the council worked well with the approach taken by student unions and universities. Collection days were organised so unwanted items could be donated to good causes and the Leave Leeds Tidy project also sent their champions door-to-door to offer advice.