Garden Waste Permit are still available to purchase. If you do not have a valid garden waste permit displayed from 1 June, only food waste should be placed in your brown bin. Your brown bin will not be emptied if it contains garden waste and you do not have a new permit displayed from 1 June. Permits cost £52.75 per household and are valid until 31 May 2026. It can take up to two weeks for a permit to be delivered, so please order soon to avoid missing collections. You can purchase your garden waste permit here: https://www.westlothian.gov.uk/brownbins or by calling 01506 280000 Thank you to all those who help to recycle household items and waste, such as garden waste. Last year, you contributed to the 12,763 tonnes of brown bin waste that was collected for recycling. Why are garden waste charges now common across Scotland? • The collection of garden waste is not a statutory service, and with reducing budgets and increasing costs, Councils can no longer afford to operate this type of collection as a free service, which is why most Scottish councils have a garden waste collection fee • To retain a garden waste collection service, it was therefore necessary to introduce a charge to contribute towards the cost of its provision. The garden waste permits generate income and 100% of that income is used to provide the garden waste service. There is no obligation to make use of the chargeable service and residents can continue to dispose of garden waste free of charge at the Community Recycling Centres.