Frequently Asked Questions about Zero-Waste Maastricht Waste Collection Test Background... 2 1. Why is the municipality running a waste collection test? The waste collection system already works well, doesn't it?... 2 2. Who decided that there should be a waste collection test in Maastricht?... 2 3. Which neighbourhoods is the waste collection test taking place in?... 2 4. Why have Boschpoort and Jekerkwartier Noord been selected for the waste collection test?.. 2 5. Why has my neighbourhood been selected for the waste collection test?/why has my neighbourhood not been selected for the waste collection test?... 3 6. What is the municipality doing to reduce household waste?... 3 7. How much influence do residents have on the choice of waste collection system?... 3 8. Why do I have to sort my waste at home? Surely this could be done in a factory?... 3 9. Doesn't all the sorted waste just end up in one big pile?... 4 Waste Collection Test Getting Started!... 4 10. When does the waste collection test start?... 4 11. What will change for me?... 4 12. When does the waste collection test end?... 4 13. Where can I dispose of my waste during the waste collection test?... 4 14. Is waste collection changing for other types of waste as well?... 5 15. Can I still use the old collection system during the test period?... 5 16. Can I still order containers for the test?... 5 17. Can I order more than one container?... 5 18. Can I swap my container for a different-sized container?... 5 19. My container has been stolen. Can I order a new one?... 5 20. Do I have to give my containers back when the test is over?... 5 21. I already have an organic kitchen and garden waste (GFT) container. Can I continue to use it or do I need to order a new one for the test?... 5 1
22. How do I keep my containers (for nappies and fruit and vegetable waste) clean?... 5 23. Why do I have to collect food and garden waste separately?... 6
24. Where are the garden waste containers in my neighbourhood?... 6 25. What can I put in the garden waste containers in my neighbourhood?... 6 26. What happens when the waste collection test finishes?... 6 27. What if my electric devices don't fit in the container at the neighbourhood recycling point?.. 6 28. Where do I have to take my household waste now that the municipality is coming to pick up household waste less often during the test?... 6 29. Who can I contact with any questions, comments, or good ideas?... 6 Waste Collection Test Background 1. Why is the municipality running a waste collection test? The waste collection system already works well, doesn't it? The municipality has already made a lot of headway in terms of waste separation, but the system could be improved further! Lots of unsorted household waste is still being collected every year. Although we can't check what's in your residual waste bag, each resident produces an average of 114 kg of unsorted household waste every year. This waste is incinerated, even though most of it could actually be recycled. There is still a lot of organic kitchen and garden waste, plastic, paper, and other recyclable raw materials in these residual waste bags, which equates to around 90 kg of raw materials that we incinerate unnecessarily per resident every year. And this is a big shame, because raw materials are becoming scarcer and more expensive all the time. Sorting more waste and recycling it means we can be more efficient with our raw materials. So, in order to sort it better and be more aware of how we process raw materials, Maastricht municipal council has decided to improve the existing waste collection system together with residents. To work out the best way for the Municipality of Maastricht to arrange this collection, we're starting with a waste collection test. We also want to consider other types of waste collection in this test and trial them in practice together with residents, with a clear focus on convenience and respect for the environment. The new collection system also needs to be cost-effective and provide as much social or other employment as possible. 2. Who decided that there should be a waste collection test in Maastricht? In April 2016, the municipal council expressed its ambition for a zero-waste Maastricht by 2030, with an intermediate goal of halving unsorted household waste by 2020. This means reducing it from 114 kg per resident per year in 2016 to just 57 kg in 2020. These ambitions are recorded in the Household Waste Plan 2016-2020, which also states that we'll be running a waste collection test with Maastricht residents to achieve these targets. Prior to this plan being formulated, all the targets and methods for achieving them were discussed with Maastricht residents in a City Meeting on 26 May 2015. 3. Which neighbourhoods is the waste collection test taking place in? The waste collection test is taking place in Boschpoort and Jekerkwartier Noord (the area to the north of the Jeker river). 2
4. Why have Boschpoort and Jekerkwartier Noord been selected for the waste collection test? We want to arrive at a system that works for the whole of Maastricht and all its residents. It must be easy for everyone to sort their waste: whether you live in a block of flats or a detached house; are a student or retired; work from home or are away on business a lot.
That's why the test is being held in neighbourhoods with a variety of types of residence and households, i.e. Boschpoort (high-rise and low-rise) and the Jekerkwartier (city centre area to the north of the Jeker river). 5. Why has my neighbourhood been selected for the waste collection test?/why has my neighbourhood not been selected for the waste collection test? Three neighbourhoods have been selected to take part in the waste collection tests: a low-rise neighbourhood, a high-rise neighbourhood, and a neighbourhood in the city centre. These areas have been chosen because lots of waste collection systems were designed with specific buildings in mind (low-rise or high-rise), or because of physical aspects of the surroundings (e.g. the amount of space available for waste containers and collection vehicles). It was important that these neighbourhoods accurately represented the rest of Maastricht in terms of population composition, housing type, and other characteristics. This is because the results of the test neighbourhoods will play an important role in the type of waste collection systems that will be implemented throughout Maastricht in 2019. To ensure the best test results, it is also important that the neighbourhoods contain between 300 and 1,000 households and that they correspond to the waste collection route developed by Maastricht's City Management Department (Stadsbeheer Maastricht). After comparing all of the neighbourhoods in Maastricht, the following were selected as suitable test neighbourhoods: low-rise: Boschpoort low-rise (504 households) high-rise: Boschpoort high-rise (324 households) city centre: Jekerkwartier Noord (1,022 households) If you live in one of these neighbourhoods, then you will have received a message from us about the waste collection test. 6. What is the municipality doing to reduce household waste? The waste collection system is aimed at minimizing household waste. Waste can be sorted in various ways. The Municipality of Maastricht has 57 neighbourhood recycling points and four recycling centres where you can recycle a lot of waste for free. Organic kitchen and garden waste (GFT) and household waste are collected free of charge. Consult your waste collection calendar for your neighbourhood for more information about collection times. We also sort waste in the municipal offices, with different bins for plastic cups, plastic packaging, and paper available in many different places. 7. How much influence do residents have on the choice of waste collection system? Residents in the three test neighbourhoods started by designing a suitable waste collection system. This system needs to result in less unsorted household waste and more raw materials, be user-friendly and cost-effective, and provide as much social employment as possible. All residents in the test neighbourhoods have been able to vote on the variants designed by their residents' panel, and the chosen waste collection system is being trialled in the test neighbourhoods for six months in 2017. The municipal council will then make a decision in 2018 about the introduction of a new waste collection system for the city from 2019. The experiences in the test neighbourhoods will of course be taken into account. Read more about the citizen participation frameworks here (link to citizen participation frameworks). PDF: add citizen participation frameworks under policy plan. 8. Why do I have to sort my waste at home? Surely this could be done in a factory? 3
We sort the waste at home (at its source) to ensure that the materials are of good enough quality to reuse. When unsorted waste is collected and then separated later in a sorting factory, the mixture of waste is largely contaminated by waste food, nappies, and other waste. Consider for example a milk carton that has been in the dustbin together with wet waste (such as food waste) for a week. The milk carton will be dirty and perhaps already rotten.
This makes it impossible to reuse or recycle, and the raw materials will be lost in the incinerator. Reusable materials that are sorted earlier retain their value. 9. Doesn't all the sorted waste just end up in one big pile? It's a persistent myth that there's no point sorting waste. Lots of people think it all just goes in one big pile before being incinerated. This simply isn't true: Waste food ferments and produces biogas, and what remains is processed into compost. In future, it will probably be possible to use waste food in the production of bioplastics, bio-aromatics and animal feed; Plastic packaging is reused in the production of plastic products; Drink cartons are processed into high-quality cardboard and plastic in a special pulper; Tin cans are reused to produced new metal; Old clothing and shoes can often be processed into new textiles or reused. Waste Collection Test Getting Started! 10. When does the waste collection test start? The waste collection test is being prepared together with the neighbourhood residents' panels. The residents' panels have designed the waste collection test over the last few months, and we're going to start putting this new method of waste collection into practice on 1 June 2017. We'll test run this waste collection system for six months, until 30 November 2017. You can read when and where you can dispose of your waste in the new waste collection calendar. If you have lost or not received your waste collection calendar, click here for the waste collection calendar for the test neighbourhoods: Boschpoort Low-Rise, Boschpoort High-Rise, and Jekerkwartier Noord. 11. What will change for me? If you live in one of the test neighbourhoods, you'll have already received an information pack with a letter about the start of the test and a new waste collection calendar. This waste collection calendar provides information on when and where you can dispose of your waste. If you have lost or not received the waste collection calendar, click here for the waste collection calendar for the test neighbourhoods: Boschpoort Low-Rise, Boschpoort High-Rise, and Jekerkwartier Noord test. 12. When does the waste collection test end? The waste collection test ends on 30 November 2017. The test will then be evaluated. The waste collection test will last for six months. This will give us enough time to test, monitor, and evaluate the new waste collection systems. At the start of 2018, the results of the waste collection tests will be processed into a recommendation with proposals for improving waste collection throughout Maastricht. 13. Where can I dispose of my waste during the waste collection test? The waste collection method is changing for the following types of waste during the waste collection test: organic kitchen and garden waste (GFT), nappies and incontinence products, textiles and small electric devices, bulky household waste (only for Boschpoort Low-Rise), and other household waste. 4
The collection for other types of waste will remain unchanged during the test, so you can dispose of PMD waste (plastic packaging, metallic packaging, and drink cartons), glass, and paper at recycling points as normal. Other waste can be taken to the recycling centres. 14. Is waste collection changing for other types of waste as well? No, only the following types of waste collection are changing during the waste collection test: organic kitchen and garden waste (GFT), nappies and incontinence products, textiles and small electric devices, bulky household waste (only for Boschpoort Low-Rise), and other household waste. The other types of waste collection will remain unchanged during the test, so you can dispose of PMD waste (plastic packaging, metallic packaging, and drink cartons), glass, and paper at recycling points as normal. Other waste can be taken to the recycling centres. 15. Can I still use the old collection system during the test period? The old collection system for organic kitchen and garden waste (GFT) and other household waste will be discontinued. This waste will only be collected on the new days. You can read when and where you can dispose of your waste in the new waste collection calendar. If you have lost or not received your waste collection calendar, Click here for the waste collection calendar for the test neighbourhoods: Boschpoort Low-Rise, Boschpoort High-Rise and Jekerkwartier Noord test neighbourhood. 16. Can I still order containers for the test? If you don't yet have a fruit and vegetable waste or nappy container but would like one, please order it via afvalloos@maastricht.nl or by calling the municipality on telephone number 14 043. 17. Can I order more than one container? You can order a maximum of two nappy containers and a maximum of two fruit and vegetable waste containers. You can order these containers via afvalloos@maastricht.nl or by calling the municipality on 14 043. 18. Can I swap my container for a different-sized container? You can swap your container for a different size during the test. Please contact the municipality about this by calling telephone number 14 043 or via afvalloos@maastricht.nl. 19. My container has been stolen. Can I order a new one? If your container has been stolen, you can order a new one by contacting the municipality on telephone number 14 043 or via afvalloos@maastricht.nl. 20. Do I have to give my containers back when the test is over? No, this is not necessary, but keep in mind that the containers remain the property of the municipality, so please leave the containers at your residence if you move house. 21. I already have an organic kitchen and garden waste (GFT) container. Can I continue to use it or do I need to order a new one for the test? If you have a 25-litre container for organic kitchen and garden waste (GFT), you can simply continue to use it for the test period. However, please keep in mind that there are different collection dates and 5
different collection methods for garden waste (the T fraction) during the test period in Boschpoort Low-Rise (140-litre T-container) and Jekerkwartier (garden waste containers in the neighbourhood). 22. How do I keep my containers (for nappies and fruit and vegetable waste) clean? Please regularly wash your containers with water (and soap). To reduce the smell, you can leave the lid open a little bit, to give it some fresh air. Position the container
in a cool spot if possible. You could place a bio-degradable bag or piece of newspaper on the bottom to stop waste from freezing or sticking. 23. Why do I have to collect food and garden waste separately? Waste food is normally produced in the kitchen every day and can quickly start to smell. There is normally only a small amount, so it's good if you can dispose of it quickly and don't need to use a large bin. This is why we will collect waste food every week. Unlike waste food, most people do not produce garden waste every day. Garden waste is more seasonal and if you have it, it's usually a large amount all at once. Separating the collection of waste food and garden waste means we can better arrange the collection at the moments when you produce waste food and garden waste, which means it's less of a nuisance for you at home. 24. Where are the garden waste containers in my neighbourhood? A test run with garden waste containers will take place in the Jekerkwartier test area. These will be situated in the following locations: Academieplein, Grote Looiersstraat and the Stadspark. 25. What can I put in the garden waste containers in my neighbourhood? A test run with garden waste containers will take place in the Jekerkwartier test area. These will be situated in the following locations: Academieplein, Grote Looiersstraat and the Stadspark. These garden waste containers can be used to dispose of garden waste such as cut flowers, house plants, garden plants, small pruning waste, grass, and leaves. 26. What happens when the waste collection test finishes? After the end of the test, we will switch back to the old waste collection system. The municipal council will then make a decision, partly based on the evaluation of the test and experiences of the residents in the test neighbourhoods, about implementing changes to the waste collection system for the whole municipality. These changes will be implemented from 2019. 27. What if my electric devices don't fit in the container at the neighbourhood recycling point? If the devices do not fit through the opening of the container (which is 27 cm in diameter), you can dispose of them at one of the recycling centres. You can find more information about the locations and opening times of these recycling centres here. 28. Where do I have to take my household waste now that the municipality is coming to pick up household waste less often during the test? Sorting your waste more means you will have less household waste. We will help you with this by providing more opportunity to dispose of sorted waste (picking up sorted waste from home, taking sorted waste to recycling points, taking sorted waste to recycling centres). This means less household waste will need to be collected. If you want to dispose of more household waste in the meantime, however, you can simply take it to the municipal recycling centres. Taking household waste there in a purchased municipal waste bag is free of charge (you have already paid for the bag), but if you take it in a different bag then you will have to pay a fee. 29. Who can I contact with any questions, comments, or good ideas? If you have any general questions, ideas or comments about the waste collection test, please contact the Municipality of Maastricht via afvalloos@maastricht.nl or by calling 14 043. 6
If you have any questions or complaints about your waste being picked up, if have you seen some litter, then please report this digitally by visiting Report an Issue on the Municipality of Maastricht website of via the BuitenBeter app. 7