And now more testing will take place, this time in Newton Stewart next month, before the kerbside recycling scheme is rolled out regionwide.
A Northern Irish firm, Bryson Recycling, have been observing current collections methods and advising the council on the way forward.
As a result of the discussions, officials want to reconfigure the compartments in the recycling vehicles and alter the way householders present their items for recycling, all in a bid to improve collection times.
Food waste will now be incorporated into dry recycling vehicles; cans and plastic will be mixed; and different colours of glass won’t need separating.
In a report for this week’s environment and infrastructure committee, service manager Nicola Simpson said: “Removing the requirement to separate different colours of glass, and cans from plastics will free up stillages on the vehicle to allow the collection of food waste as part of the single round and is also expected to increase productivity allowing larger run sizes.
“This will result in a weekly dry and food waste collection and a simplified collection calendar for residents and provide an improved kerbside recycling service.”
She added: “It is necessary to trial the revised working practices on a small scale prior to moving to a final collection method to ensure that the expected savings in collection times are achievable.”
