Ian Collins, managing director at Plastic Omnium says, “Kerbside boxes are convenient for households where one or more wheeled bins can’t be accommodated. Boxes provide a convenient way to store waste streams in a home although if there’s space for a box, there’s generally enough space for the safer option, a small wheeled bin.”

Problems do arise when residents have to move that box to the kerbside. Carrying a loaded box out of the home to the collection highway is not suitable for many, whereas a small wheeled bin could be more easily moved to the kerbside.

Mr Andrew Stacey, specialist lawyer in health and safety at Pinsent Masons, says, “section 3 of the Health and Safety at Work Act (1974) imposes a duty on all employers to conduct their undertaking by taking all reasonably practical steps to ensure the health and safety of any person who might be affected by their undertaking.”

“Clearly, with kerbside boxes, the householder is obliged to lift the kerbside box from their home to the kerbside if the local authority is going to collect that element of refuse” says Mr Collins.

“The local authority - and its contractor - is relieved of this responsibility if householders choose to make their own arrangements, e.g. going to the bottle bank or paper bank. But given that local authorities are seeking to encourage householders to recycle their waste, they presumably want to make it easy for householders to comply with their policy. The key issue is the weight of the box when full or semi-laden and that the local authority puts a warning notice on each box asking householders to take care and possibly advising them to seek assistance or make repeat trips.

“Employees - i.e. refuse collectors - are protected under the same act but under a different section (2). This states that their employer must take all reasonable and practicable steps to ensure their health and safety while at work. This calls for adequate training and appropriate resources to be supplied by the local authority.”

Published in Recovered Fibre News, November 2005

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