The waste service changes, rolled out in August 2025 by East and North Herts Councils, alongside their partner Veolia, were designed to help residents to reduce their waste, provide them with more opportunities to recycle and so support higher recycling targets, and create a more efficient and environmentally sustainable collection service. Twelve months on, the results show residents have risen to the challenge.
Across East and North Hertfordshire, the amount of non-recyclable household waste collected has fallen by an impressive 36%* - that’s around 14,370 tonnes (the equivalent in weight to around 150 blue whales)! While recycling has increased significantly through greater use of food waste, cardboard and paper, and plastic bag and wrapping collections.
In East Herts alone, more than 6,500 tonnes of food waste have been collected in the first year of the new service. And North Herts residents have also increased their use of the food waste service, with an additional 570 tonnes collected compared with the previous year, taking their 12-month total up to 5,000 tonnes. Getting so much food waste out of the rubbish and into the recycling system is a big environmental win.
Introducing larger paper and cardboard bins has also helped drive a 19%* increase in paper and cardboard recycling, resulting in more than 1,950 additional tonnes of material being recycled. Meanwhile, the introduction of kerbside collections for plastic bags and wrapping has also proved successful, with 325 tonnes collected across the two districts in the first year.
The waste and recycling apps for both councils, introduced last November, have certainly helped residents tackle the ‘which bin when’ question, with around 31,000 subscribers across both districts now benefiting from regular reminders about what to put out when, including during Bank Holiday collection changes.
(www.north-herts.gov.uk/bins-and-recycling-collections-app)
(www.eastherts.gov.uk/bins-waste-and-recycling/your-east-herts-app)
Councillor Tim Hoskin, Executive Member for Environmental Sustainability at East Herts Council, said:
“I’d like to extend my thanks and appreciation to all our residents for their patience, commitment and willingness to adapt their waste and recycling habits. We wouldn’t have been able to report such exceptional results without your support.
“I am especially pleased to see how quickly East Herts residents have adapted to separate food waste collections. Food waste is such a valuable resource when processed properly, creating biogas and biofertiliser, so it really isn’t ‘waste’ at all.
“By continuing to work together, I’m sure we can build on the success of the past 12 months and continue to increase our recycling rates and reduce our non-recyclable waste even further.”
Councillor Amy Allen, Executive Member for Environment at North Herts Council, said:
"We know the new service represented a significant change for residents, and change is not always easy. That's why it’s so encouraging to look back after a year and see the amazing results that have been achieved.
“The figures clearly show how well our residents have embraced the additional recycling opportunities available to them, playing a key part in ensuring that more material enters the circular economy rather than going to waste. We are so grateful for your efforts in helping to make a real difference for the environment.”
Ilana Shaw, Divisional Head of Municipal Operations at Veolia, said: “Thanks to our strong partnership with East and North Hertfordshire Councils, we have been able to contribute to real positive changes in our first year of working in the two districts. It has been fantastic to see residents embrace the service change, leading to our crews being able to collect significantly more recycling than before. Together, we’re directly contributing to the circular economy and the development of a cleaner, greener Hertfordshire.”
*Figures reflect changes in tonnages from Aug 2024 – July 2025 with August 2025 – July 2026