Somerset Council is asking for patience in parts of Mendip and South Somerset following delays to some waste and recycling collections.

A combination of factors has left crews unable to complete some of their scheduled collections this week. These include heavy bank holiday loads, large volumes of the cardboard, increased garden waste, vehicle breakdowns and traffic congestion linked to the Bath and West Show.

As a result, some residents will need to wait two weeks for recycling collections crews could not get to when they worked on Saturday (3 June). This recycling will be returned for on the next scheduled collection day of Friday 9 June.

Somerset Council sincerely apologises for the delays and disruption. It is working closely with its collection contractor, Suez, to get things back on track this week.

To aid collections, an additional crew will be out collecting cardboard separately in some areas this week. Any residents who find that only their cardboard is collected are asked to leave the rest out for collection later in the day.

Every week crews makes more than 350,000 collections across then county. While the vast majority usually run smoothly, the Council understands the frustration when there are delays.

Anyone affected by delayed collections is asked to make the most of the space in boxes and bags by crushing, squashing and flattening items if possible.

If you have large amounts of non-food recycling, it is also helpful if this is spread out over the next couple of collections if possible.

Storing food waste for longer periods can be difficult, especially in hot weather, but the following advice may help:

• Keep the food waste caddy and bin somewhere shady and cool.
• If it has to go, you can double-bag it and take it to a recycling site for the Energy from Waste skip.
• It can go into your kerbside rubbish bin – double-bagging reduces smells.
• If you have the space and time, home compost.

For more information and news about Somerset Council’s Waste Services visit somerset.gov.uk/waste and follow @somersetwaste on Facebook and Twitter.