Local Councillors, Sarah Bevan and Gail Coleshill, are encouraging residents to recycle and compost as much holiday waste as possible.

Throughout January the Council will be providing a free service to collect Christmas trees from peoples' properties as part of the cardboard and garden waste collections.

The Council advises anyone with a Christmas tree to remove the decorations and put it at the edge of their property where it is visible and accessible, on the same day as the cardboard and garden waste collections. The trees will be shredded and made into compost. Cardboard and brown paper should be packed flat and either tied with string or put out in a cardboard box.

"After all the Christmas excesses, now is a good time to think about making those New Year resolutions, said Cllr Gerry Curran, Executive Member for Sustainability and the Environment. "By making the most of the Bath & North East Somerset Council's recycling and composting services, everyone can really help to reduce the amount that they have to throw in the bin. This keeps waste disposal costs down and reduces the environmental impact."

In addition to the many items that are collected through the green box scheme, the Council is keen to remind people of the additional items that often arise over Christmas that can also be recycled. These include white-based wrapping paper, paper thin greetings cards, catalogues and magazines, glass bottles and jars, food and drinks cans, plastic bottles, aluminium foil and batteries.

To help the crews with this busy time, please separate your materials where possible as this will help them to do their job more quickly.

To find out how you can do your bit to recycle and compost as much as possible, please contact the Action Line on 01225 39 40 41, email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or visit  www.bathnes.gov.uk/wasteservices