First for Fife as improved plastics recycling to be introduced

Fife Council has been awarded £470,000 to develop plastic film recycling services locally.

It will fund a ‘Tomra Optical Sorter’ that will segregate flexible plastics (plastic film) from plastics and can collection.   

Plastic film is a contaminant that makes up around one fifth of the current recycling waste collected.  

From March 2021 the flexible plastics will be diverted from landfill to local markets for recycling into new products. This means a far higher percentage of our collected cans and plastics will be recycled.

Councillor Ross Vettraino, Convener - Environment, Protective Services, said: “The Council is very pleased to have been awarded this funding, which will ensure that Fife residents will have more opportunity than ever to recycle their waste. Fife will be the first Council in Scotland with the ability to accept flexible plastics (plastic film) at the kerbside for recycling.  

"Currently, plastic film is a contaminant, as it cannot be recycled, and must be removed and sent to landfill thereby incurring additional cost by way of separation, haulage, disposal and landfill tax.  From March next year, however, plastic film can be deposited in the green bins and will be collected at the kerbside and reprocessed at the Council’s recycling facility in Dunfermline. Not only will this be a financial saving and a huge boost to recycling in Fife, it will be another positive step towards a circular economy.”