A further 25,000 Belfast households are to be included in a kerbside recycling scheme. The city council service, which is being delivered by the charity Bryson House, aims to make recycling more convenient and accessible. New areas in the latest roll-out include Stranmillis, Malone Road, Lisburn Road, the Holy Land area, the Shankill and Woodvale area. Cliftonville, Ardoyne, New Lodge in the north of the city are also included, as are Bloomfield, Ballymacaret, Strandtown and Sydenham in the east. The service started in January 2005 and has already collected almost 4,000 tonnes of domestic waste. The increased area under the scheme brings the number of households included to around 50,000.
In other recycling news, data released in December has shown that overall in Northern Ireland the household waste recycling rate rose to 24% in 2005/06. This is in keeping with current aims to raise recycling rates to 45% by 2010, 50% by 2013 and 55% by 2020. By 2020 it is hoped that 30% of residual waste will be treated through mechanical-biological treatment, anaerobic digestion and thermal treatment, with the rest going to landfill.
