EMPTY wine bottles, newspapers, cans, hedge clippings - these are all items that most people would not dream of throwing in the bin.

It is second nature now to place rubbish that can be recycled into special bins to be collected and reused.

Cardboard, paper, shampoo bottles - we are accustomed to separating our waste into recyclables, placing as little as possible in the general bin, cutting the amount sent to landfill.

Every tonne of waste in the general - green coloured - waste bin costs council tax payers on average £130 a tonne more than if it was recycled.

Currently residents are allowed to put out only one green bin of refuse each week and no additional waste left alongside.

They are also provided with a grey recycling bin for paper and cardboard and a grey container with a blue lid in which to put glass, cans, foil and plastic bottles. Some areas have a brown bin for garden waste.

To encourage people to recycle more, Bradford Council is trialling a new method of waste collection.

In future, we may no longer need to spend time separating our recyclable products: a new, mechanical recycling facility - MRF - will enable all items to be placed in one bin for collection.

The method is being trialled at the Council’s Bowling Back Lane Household Waste Recycling Centre.

It includes all types of recyclable waste, such as yogurt pots, margarine cartons, take-away packaging and other waste that has previously been included in the general waster bin.

To begin with, the scheme is being introduced in Wyke, alongside a change from weekly to fortnightly collections.

"It is about making recycling simpler for residents,” said Susan Spink, waste programme manager with Bradford Council.

"The introduction of co-mingled recycling should mean that less will end up in landfill. We are encouraging people not to put recycling items in the general waste bin."

It would also save money.

“If every resident in the district took ten per cent out of their general waste bin it would result in savings of £1million,” said Councillor Sarah Ferriby, Bradford Council’s executive member for environment, sport and culture.

This year, up to July 1, 24,500 new recycling bins have been delivered to homes across the district - more than 10,000 more than last year.

“We have been encouraging people to recycle more and have seen this happen. If we want people to recycle we have to provide the bins for them to do it. We have been knocking on doors, speaking to residents and used bill boards, and passing on information through schools and neighbourhood wardens.”

If a household fails to comply with the waste collection service provided by the Council, they may be issued with a Section 46 notice instructing them how to store, dispose of and present their waste for collection. If this notice is not adhered to a fixed penalty notice can be issued.

“We have not yet taken anyone to the end of this process,” says Cllr Ferriby.

The new MRF process also means that material can be collected in a standard vehicle, rather than a split-bodied vehicle, again saving costs.

“A standard truck is a lot less costly and can hold more,” says Susan.

Companies collecting and recycling Bradford’s waste products include UPM Shotton paper mill, UK paper and card recyclers Biffa, and Blackburns, based in Dewsbury, which also collects paper and card.

Glass, cans and plastic are reused by UK Glass, Wastecare collects batteries and oil. Scrap metal is also recycled.

"The more we can influence residents to take personal responsibility for recycling the better," Susan said.

"The more we recycle the less the Council spend on waste disposal and the more we have to spend on other services."

Markets are being sought for other items, such as margarine cartons and yoghurt pots.

Of the district’s residual waste - that which could not be recycled or composted - just 12 per cent went to landfill last year. The rest was reprocessed using various methods.

Residents - in particular those whose homes cannot accommodate bins - are also encouraged to make use of the eight household waste sites across the district, as well as community recycling spots sited in supermarket car parks, community centres and schools.

“We have five community recycling spots in each constituency, for glass, cans, plastic, paper and card,” says Cllr Ferriby.

A Council app, downloadable to mobile phones, will inform people where they can go to recycle and when collection takes place.