With a statutory obligation to collect waste from households the Authority operates 11 refuse vehicles across the County that collect black bag waste from around 57,500 properties. These vehicles will collect from your home once a week.
In order to collect from this number of households each vehicle has a designated route to follow with crews of between two and four operatives. The service is so reliable that many households know what time it is by judging from what time the refuse vehicle arrives. It's a service to be proud of.
Where should I put my refuse for collection?
Your refuse should be placed on the kerbside outside your home in order for it to be collected; however, some residents are unable to do this because they are infirm.
If this applies to you, we are able to provide an assisted doorstep collection upon application. We are unable to provide this service to able bodied residents.
If you are elderly or infirm and cannot place rubbish at the kerbside for collection please contact the Customer Contact Centre on 01437 764551 for an application form.
Do I have to buy my own black bags?
The Authority provides every household with an annual allocation of black sacks contained within one roll. If these run out, we will not provide you with anymore however; you are able to purchase some extra ones from the following places:
Additional bags can be bought for £1.50 for 20 sacks (inc VAT).
My refuse keeps getting attacked by animals, why don't you provide us with wheelie bins?
Research has shown that the quantity of waste collected from households with wheelie bins is significantly higher than households that use sacks only.
This would be totally unacceptable at a time when the Council has a duty to reduce the amount of waste being sent to landfill, and when kerbside collection of recyclables is being introduced across the County.
With this in mind, if you need to put your refuse out the night before your collection, please cover it with an old blanket or carpet. This will deter any wild animals from attacking your sacks.
Please do not put your refuse out any earlier than you have to. Black bags left on the kerbside for too long are unsightly and a potential health hazard. We have the powers to inspect the bags of persistent offenders to establish ownership.
Why do some households put green sacks out for collection?
Green sacks contain green waste i.e. grass cuttings, garden trimmings and vegetable scraps.
Green waste is bio degradable and is a significant contributor of methane produced at landfill; because of this, we actively discourage residents from placing green waste out for collection. This is one of the reasons why we provided every home with free compost bins and allow green waste to be deposited at our Civic Amenity and Recycling Centres for shredding prior to being taken for centralised composting.
If you are unable to compost at home or at one of our six Civic Amenity and Recycling Centres, you can place the waste inside authorised green sacks purchased from the Authority. Green waste placed in green sacks that do not show a Pembrokeshire County Council Logo and were purchased from other sources will not be collected.
What happens to green waste collected from the kerbside?
Garden/green waste collected by the authority in green bags is NOT composted but sent to landfill.
If green waste was collected separately from the kerbside it would necessitate the use of dedicated vehicles and a dedicated collection schedule; both deemed environmentally and economically unsustainable by the Authority.
The Authority only has an obligation to collect green waste from a household when asked to do so, and in so doing can charge to recover collection, administration and sack purchase costs. This cost is reflected in the price charged for the sack.
Green sacks can be purchased from the same locations as black sacks.
Currently green sacks cost £5.92 per roll of 10 (inc. VAT) or £0.59 per sack.
Can I put my fridge freezer or other bulky items out for refuse collection?
In short, no you cannot. If you have items that are too large to be included with your normal refuse collection, then you can arrange for these to be collected by phoning the contact centre (01437 764551). They will arrange for a collection on our behalf by Frame.
There is no charge for the collection of white goods such as fridge freezers, washing machines etc, however there is a £10 charge for the collection of up to ten bulky items. This includes all types of furniture.
What about other electrical items like TV's, irons and vacuum cleaners?
No. These can be brought to any of our Civic Amenity and Recycling Centres or taken with a bulky household collection for recycling. A new directive came into force in 2007 to tackle the amount of electrical items sent to landfill each year. See the section on Civic Amenity and recycling Centres .
I run a business, how is my waste collected?
Pembrokeshire County Council oversees approximately 1400 trade waste contracts. If a business decided to undertake a trade waste agreement with the Authority, they have the option of having their waste collected via the blue bag scheme or through the hire of large wheelie bins.
Because business rates do not include refuse collections a charge is made. If a business decides to use bulk bins, a charge will be made for hiring the bins and the collection and disposal of waste.
Businesses can also take some elements of their waste to any one of the six Civic Amenity and Recycling Centres in the County for recycling. Materials such as glass, cardboard and wood among others can be accepted. A small charge may apply for some materials.
ID: 15935 Revised: 12/7/2010
