Every household in county had black bag waste inspected, council reveals
Elgan Hearn, Local Democracy Reporter
All households in a Welsh county have had their black bin bag waste inspected by council officials during the last eight years – it has been revealed.
At a meeting of Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council’s Economic Development and Environment Management scrutiny committee on Tuesday, October 21 councillors received an annual report on the authority’s Waste and Recycling performance for 2024/2025.
While the recycling rate went up from 66.18 per cent for 2023/2024 to 68.89 per cent in 2024/2025 it still fell short of the 70 per cent recycling rate.
Waste Wardens
Cllr Gareth Alban Davies (Independent group – Rassau and Garnlydan) asked questions around the council’s Waste Wardens.
Cllr Davies said: “We are reliant on the public to tell us about their neighbours who are not putting out any or very little recycling – Waste Wardens obviously respond to that.
“A lady contacted me to say that she put out four black bags every three weeks and felt she was recycling everything.
“A waste warden paid her a visit and vastly reduced how much black bag waste she puts out.
“Do wardens go out on a black bag day with our collectors and see who is putting out a lot of rubbish and then advise them accordingly?”
Andrew Long, who manages of the council’s frontline enforcement services, answered: “The wardens are very proactive in all the work they do the main enforcement tool we use at the moment is the – ‘keeping up with the Jones’ campaign.”
Keeping up with the Joneses is a campaign to ensure that every household in Blaenau Gwent recycles.
The aim of the campaign is to target the small minority of people who don’t recycle at all or who recycle very little.
Enforcement visit
Mr Long said: “Over the last six to eight years every property in the county borough has had an enforcement visit so that’s over 32,000 homes.
“The work involves taking a black bag out of someone’s presented residual waste, photograph and log it and take it to the Silent Valley HWRC (Household Waste and Recycling Centre) and examine it for any recyclable material it might contain.
“If people are identified as putting out recyclate in their residual waste then we take an enforcement process which involves serving a legal notice and FPN (fixed penalty notice) and prosecution if that isn’t paid.”
The fine is £100.
Mr Long said: “There’s a large body of work that the guys do proactively in addition to the crews notifying us where waste is being presented on collection days and we will subsequently monitor those addresses if there’s repeat offending.
“We’re very proactive when it comes to targeting non-compliant properties.”
Neighbourhood Services Manager Mathew Stent said it was about finding the balance of “carrot and stick” to ensure people do recycle as much as possible.
The committee approved the report.
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Are we meant to believe that? All black bags over the last eight years have been opened and inspected!! Well, that is what the headline and intro is alledging or is it a headline to grab our attention? If this is true it must have cost a fortune!! No wonder some councils are in financial difficulties.
I took it as meaning that over the last eight years every house has had its black bags inspected at least once. Nonetheless a waste of money. No acknowledgement of the barriers that prevent better recycling.
Cllr Davies said: “We are reliant on the public to tell us about their neighbours who are not putting out any or very little recycling – Waste Wardens obviously respond to that. …. Proper Stasi behavior. Snitch on your neighbour if they fall below their neighbours expectations of how much recycling or black bins they should put out. This is NOT how you win the war on climate change. No one who believes in progressive politics or libertarian politics should be appalled by this and refuse to engage with the Council on such issues. Fly-tipping! Yes Has your neighbour put… Read more »
Is it still acceptable to use the term carrot and stick ECHR might not agree to that in this modern world.
Neighbour against neighbour councillor telling blatant lies who would want to live in this draconian area
Please we pay the highest Council Tax in the UK and we are the poorest region in the UK? We will also be expected to pay for 36 more MSPs plus their staff at least £5m per year yet no reduction in Local Authorities, WHY NOT? Because we the lesser people, the plebs if you will have voted for incompetent people to represent us. One symtom is this nonsense of sorting out rubbish before it goes off to recycling. Why? We already pay for this service in our CT? WAKE UP AND LETS VOTE THESE INADEQUATE PEOPLE OUT IN 2026!!!
And who will you vote for to change this?
It would be great if NC could get a legal viewpoint on all this as it’s very concerning. It’s also slightly crackers that, with councils rattling on about budgets, they find the time and money to go through thousands of bins. How many people are having less social care (the biggest issue we face) because hundreds of thousands have been spent rummaging through bins to find an errant piece of paper?
It’s deeply unsettling to learn that every household’s black bag waste has been inspected. The thought of someone sifting through my rubbish, especially items as private as used tampons and pads, feels like an absolute violation of dignity and privacy. Regardless of the aims around recycling compliance, such scrutiny crosses boundaries.
Couldn’t agree more.
Neighbours not recycling? If you See It, then Snitch It and we’ll make sure they Sort It.
See It, Snitch It, Sort It.
Sounds like a headline for The Onion!
What if a family householder dies and someone has to empty their house. It’s easier to just put everything into black bags for the tip if it’s not wanted.