Residents urged to temporarily limit fridge and freezer disposals

Steps are being taken by Derbyshire County Council to temporarily limit the number of fridges and freezers collected at its household waste recycling centres.

The move is in response to problems being experienced by specialist facilities across the country which councils rely on to dispose of appliances they collect.

Now, the county council will only accept a single fridge, freezer or fridge freezer from Derbyshire residents who are registered to use the household waste recycling centres.

It follows several specialist processing facilities being taken out of operation or having reduced capacity following fires and other operational issues, creating substantial pressure on the national waste recycling and treatment networks.

Around 1,500 fridges and freezers are collected at household waste recycling centres in Derbyshire every month.

Some neighbouring areas have already put temporary measures in place and have stopped accepting fridges and freezers at their sites.

Derbyshire residents must be registered to use their local household waste recycling centre before they can dispose of a fridge or freezer. This is to prevent people living in neighbouring areas from using them and residents can register online at www.derbyshire.gov.uk/recyclingcentres

Where possible, residents are being urged to make alternative arrangements. Where appliances are safe to store, residents are being encouraged to hold onto old fridges and freezers until the national situation improves, and anyone with a working appliance that they no longer need is being urged to consider alternative options such as repair, reuse, donation, or resale where appropriate.

Anyone choosing to dispose of appliances using a private company are urged to make sure they are a registered waste carrier. If their waste is fly-tipped, they could be fined or face prosecution. To search for a registered waste carrier, visit the Environment Agency website.

Councillor Carol Wood, Derbyshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Environment, said: “We’ve put a temporary limit in place to reduce the number of fridges and freezers taken to our household waste recycling centres while national issues with disposal capacity continue.

“This will help to reduce demand on the already stretched national system and help to prevent a backlog of fridges and freezers at our sites.

“We stopped short of introducing a complete ban on fridges and freezers at our sites during this period and appreciate residents’ understanding and cooperation while issues with national disposal capacity are addressed.

“Please make sure you are registered to use our sites before you travel. You can register online at www.derbyshire.gov.uk/recyclingcentres.”

The temporary arrangement is expected to remain in place for the next few months and the county council is keeping the situation under review.