‘WHITE BAG’ PROJECT TO ENCOURAGE RECYCLING IN THE CITY

A recycling project between The University of Worcester and Fortis Living has been welcomed by residents.

The initiative comes hot on the heels of a five year collaboration between the University, Worcester City Council and the Chartered Institute of Waste Management, challenging students’ and landlords’ perceptions and behaviours around recycling.

Following on from the success of this ‘White Bag’ scheme, the University approached Fortis Living to discuss piloting a similar project at one of its housing schemes.

The project was run at Cripplegate House in St John’s, which is owned and managed by Fortis Living.

Paul Edwards, Community Officer at Fortis Living said : “On average, we each throw away an enormous 407kg of waste every year.  Ensuring we are involved in initiatives to reduce the amount of waste is therefore vital.  The aims of the project included reducing contaminated waste, encouraging better awareness about recycling, ensuring bin stores remain tidy and ultimately, that more recyclable items are recycled every week.”

The project, which began earlier this year, has already seen a visible reduction in contaminated waste and ran for six weeks.

Around 100 free polycarbonate bags were distributed to tenants; the bags were designed to be either free standing or hung from hooks, ensuring residents have a space saving receptacle to store items of recycling prior to disposal.  Each bag had printed information on it informing residents what they can and can’t recycle.

Paul concluded : “Residents responded enthusiastically to the project and are keen to share their experiences of how other residents in Worcester can be influenced to change their behaviours around recycling habits.”

The results include an impressive 88 per cent of residents confirming that the project had given them more confidence regarding recycling.

Fortis Living provides more than 16,000 homes throughout Worcestershire, Warwickshire, Herefordshire and Gloucestershire.

For further information, please contact Paul Edwards, Community Officer at Fortis Living on 01905 670270 or email him atpedwards@fortisliving.com.