Serco has secured an £80m waste contract to help Milton Keynes Council crack its recycling challenge.
Under the new contract, the council will offer free collection of food and garden waste from July next year.
Milton Keynes is the latest council to take action before fines are levied by the EU of £150 a tonne for waste sent to landfill above agreed targets.
The EU has said the amount sent to landfill must be cut back to 75% of 1995 levels, from 2010.
By composting residents’ biodegradable waste, Milton Keynes will increase its recycling by 6%. The authority currently recycles 37% of its waste and this will increase to 43%, once the measures are put in place.
The national target for recycling is now set at 30% for all councils. The move comes at a time when councils are battling with residents over weekly bin collections, in a bid to cut the amount of waste sent to landfill.
Geoff Beck, head of environmental services at the council, said: ‘Waste is a problem which is going to get worse because the EU’s landfill allowance will fall every year. We put a lot of work into explaining the benefits of recycling to people, and they now recognise the issues. But, we need to keep the message going.’
Mike Boult, managing director of Serco’s local government business, said: ‘We are very excited by our new partnership with Milton Keynes Council as we share the council’s view that environmental issues are increasingly important, and that we must engage with the community to improve these services.’
In partnership with Northamptonshire CC, the council is considering alternative options for the remaining waste it sends to landfill.
Serco will take over from Cory next March for an initial, seven-year period.
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