New recycling charges are being introduced for some everyday household items, but it could be years before most islanders have to pay them.
The new charges will apply to TVs, fridges and other large household appliances, as well as for construction materials, to reflect the cost of processing these items. These charges are expected to raise around £150,000 per year, which will reduce the taxpayer funding required for waste services.
Most households will see very little impact, because the charges mainly relate to electrical items designed to last 10 years or more, and are therefore unlikely to be thrown out very often.
From January, a £30 charge will apply when dropping off fridges, freezers, and other cooling equipment, and £20 for washing machines, dishwashers and tumble driers. TVs and computer monitors will cost £10.
Guernsey Waste operations manager, Sarah Robinson, said the targeted charges reflected the user pays approach: “These are not everyday purchases for most people. However, the way waste services are currently funded, when someone buys a new fridge or TV, the cost of recycling their old one has to be met by everyone, and that isn’t particularly fair.
“If someone is spending several hundred pounds on a new appliance, we think it is reasonable they contribute to the cost of dealing with their old one. The charge is likely to represent a very small proportion of their total outlay and will reduce the funding which the taxpayer is currently having to provide.”
A charge for plasterboard will be the same as for general refuse, at £3.59 per 90 litre bag. The same fee will also apply for ‘inert waste’ – typically building materials – but small quantities will still be accepted free of charge.
Mattresses are currently the only item that households pay for directly to cover the cost of their recycling. There is no separate fee for other recyclables, including materials collected from the kerbside, garden waste, scrap metal and other items accepted free of charge at the Household Waste & Recycling Centre at Longue Hougue.
Guernsey Waste’s 2024 budget has forecast an operating deficit of around £500,000 next year. That is because current household waste charges do not cover the cost of all the facilities and services provided.
The majority of the money required to fund household waste and recycling services comes through a combination of an annual bill per household, plus the sticker charge for bags of general waste.
Because islanders recycle around 70% of all their waste, the amount being raised through bag charges is not sufficient to cover the cost of the services and facilities provided. Last year, the States voted to limit any increase in the sticker charge and annual bill, instead funding the shortfall from general revenue.
From January, the sticker charge for a 90 litre bag of general waste will increase by 15p, to £3.22, and the annual WDA charge next year will rise by £5, to £107.97.
