Swansea’s blue bag plastics trial extended – 70 tonnes collected so far

Around 20,000 households across the city have been stuffing crisp packets, bread bags and biscuit wrappers into special blue bags for kerbside pick‑up. The trial, launched in spring, was designed to see if residents would embrace recycling the trickiest plastics that usually end up in black bags.

They did. Within weeks, Swansea Bay News reported more than five tonnes had already been collected. Now the total has soared past 70 tonnes, with the material recycled into new products like bags for life and bin liners.

“A great success story”

Cabinet Member Cyril Anderson said:

“The trial so far has been a really great success story. Residents have got on board with it and have quickly seen the value in using the recycling service and reducing the amount of household waste they put in the black bag. Our plan is to continue the trial into the new year and give residents in the trial areas the opportunity to use the blue bags until June.”

Where it runs

The scheme covers a mix of areas across Swansea – from Blaenymaes, Fforestfach and Penlan to Clydach, Hafod and Townhill – chosen to test how different housing types use the service. Residents outside the trial can still recycle soft plastics at supermarket collection points.

What goes in the bag

Accepted items include crisp packets, bread bags, cereal liners, pet food bags, magazine wrapping and multipack rings. Residents are asked to rinse items and tie bags securely with a double knot.

Items such as cling film, polystyrene, cleaning product pouches and blister packs are not accepted and should go in black bags.

What’s next

The Welsh Government is collating data from Swansea’s trial to help decide how similar schemes could be rolled out across other towns and cities. For now, Swansea households in the pilot areas can keep filling their blue bags until 30 June 2026.

Related stories from Swansea Bay News

Council to trial soft plastic kerbside recycling scheme in Swansea
Swansea Council launched the pilot scheme in April, inviting 20,000 households to recycle soft plastics at the kerbside.

Swansea residents embrace new soft plastics recycling trial with over five tonnes already collected
Early figures showed strong uptake, with residents quickly filling blue bags and more than five tonnes collected within weeks.

Plans revealed to change kerbside recycling in Swansea
Wider proposals to reshape recycling collections across the city, including how soft plastics could fit into future services.

Council issues apology after missed Christmas recycling collections

Carmarthenshire council apologised for “significant disruptions” to its waste and recycling collections during and after the Christmas and New Year holiday.

The council said its delivery of collections this Christmas period had “fallen short” of the service levels residents expect and what the Authority wishes to deliver.

The Authority said it is working hard, directly with its crews, to rectify the situation as soon as possible.  

The council added that whilst bank holiday waste collection services have had multiple challenges for a number of years, the County Council has undertaken trials of various solutions to improve collection performance.  However, the main challenge remains in staff availability.

The council said its operational workforce has no contractual obligation to work either on a bank holiday, or the weekend following, and it has struggled to obtain sufficient levels of resource across the county to deliver certainty of service.

The council’s Cabinet Member for Transport, Waste and Infrastructure Services – Cllr Edward Thomas said: “I wholeheartedly sympathise with our residents that have been affected by the disruption to the bin collections over the past few weeks and understand their frustrations.

“Please be assured that we are working diligently to catch up on all missed collections and our officers are looking at all possible solutions to prevent this level of disruption from happening again. We have committed to engaging with staff and trade unions to understand how we can provide certainty of service for future bank holidays and we will develop a detailed plan that balances operational challenges, staff views and the needs of the community alongside the financial implications. 

“This Christmas, we have in most parts successfully completed the collections of our residual waste (black bag) and AHP (nappy waste) collections. However, the recycling (blue bag and food waste) collections have been challenging. This is partly due to the substantial recycling volumes during the festive period, which were expected. However, the issue was compounded by staff absence levels, increased vehicle breakdowns, and delays at our transfer stations all leading to widescale service failure across the county.

“Once again, I would like to reiterate my apologies to affected residents and thank them for their understanding and patience during this challenging period for our recycling and waste service.”

The council is asking residents to log any missed collections on their website to address the issue more efficiently and ensure waste is collected as soon as possible.

(Lead image: Carmarthenshire Council)

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