Carmarthenshire County Council will introduce a new separated recycling collections service in mid-late autumn 2026, with around one third of homes, mainly in the western parts of the county, changing to the new service during this first phase.
The new service, known as Separated Recycling, is part of Welsh Government’s ‘Collections Blueprint’ aimed to increase the amount of recycling collected and improve its quality, helping Wales achieve higher recycling rates.
First introduced in the early 2000’s, Carmarthenshire will be the 19th local authority in Wales to transition to Separated Recycling collections, and benefit from an increase in recycling rates.
Councils could face heavy fines for failing to meet Welsh Government’s recycling targets, which can directly impact council taxpayers.
The Council is introducing these changes in two phases across the county. The remaining two thirds of homes will stay on the current Mixed Recycling (blue bags) service until the second phase.
Some homes in the west of the county will also remain on the current Mixed Recycling (blue bags) collection service for now, if they fall into one or more of the following categories:
- Flats
- Homes with a shared or communal collection point for their recycling and waste
- Homes that have limited or difficult access for collection crews and vehicles
As part of these service improvements, all homes across the county may see changes to their collection day and/or week as the Council works to make the service as efficient and reliable as possible.
Every home in the county will receive a letter in the summer confirming whether they will change to the new Separated Recycling service in mid-late autumn or remain on the current Mixed Recycling (blue bags) service for now.
What’s changing?
Residents changing to the new Separated Recycling service will be asked to sort their recycling into separate reusable sacks and containers. The Council will no longer collect recycling in single-use blue bags from these homes.
As part of the new service, residents will also be able to recycle even more of their waste from home, as the Council starts collecting plastic bags & wrapping, and household batteries.
The Council will deliver the new recycling sacks and an annual supply of food waste caddy liners to homes changing to the new service during August and September 2026.
Homes changing to the new service will receive:
- a reusable red sack for metals, plastics and cartons
- a reusable orange sack for cardboard
- a reusable blue sack for paper
- a roll of red bags for plastic bags and wrapping
- a small reusable white sack for household batteries
Food waste and recycling will continue to be collected every week, with glass bottles and jars also being collected every week.
The Council will continue to collect up to 3 black bags of non-recyclable waste every three weeks.
There will be no changes to garden waste or hygiene and nappy waste collections.
What happens next?
All homes across the county will receive a letter in the summer confirming whether they will change to the new Separated Recycling service in mid-late autumn or remain on the current Mixed Recycling (blue bags) service for now.
Residents can use the postcode checker on the Council’s website to check if the changes affect their home this year. They can also check for family members or neighbours who also live in the county.
In September 2026:
- Homes changing to the new service this year will receive a second letter confirming any changes to their collection day and/or week, an information pack explaining how to use the new service, and a new collections calendar.
- Homes not changing to the new service this year will receive a second letter confirming any changes to their collection day and/or week, and a new collections calendar.
The Council will deliver the usual annual supply of blue bags and food waste caddy liners this autumn to homes not changing to the new service this year.
At this stage, residents do not need to take any action and should continue using their current recycling collections service as normal, until they are sent further information by the Council.
The Council is committed to making the transition as smooth as possible. Support will be provided to help residents adapt to the new service.
Residents are encouraged to sign up to receive free email or text message reminders for their recycling and waste collections, regardless of the service they are using.
They are also encouraged to share this information with family members, friends or neighbours who may rely on others for updates and information.
More information, including a postcode checker and frequently asked questions, is available here.
Carmarthenshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Transport, Waste and Infrastructure Services, Cllr Edward Thomas, said:
This new Separated Recycling service is an important step forward for Carmarthenshire. By sorting recycling at the kerbside, we can improve the quality of materials collected and support Wales’ ambition to become a world leader in recycling. We are introducing the changes in phases to make sure the transition is as smooth as possible. There is no need to take any action at this stage – we will contact every home directly with everything they need to know.”
