Councillors meet today to consider whether to charge residents for additional recycling containers.

West Oxfordshire District Council provides households one recycling box, a blue lidded 240 litre bin and two food waste containers per property free of charge.

It also provides one 240 litre wheeled bin for refuse and one 240 litre wheeled bin for subscribers to the garden waste collection service.

In addition, residents can request additional containers delivered by Ubico Ltd.

A report said while many requests for additional recycling containers will be genuine, officers are aware that some are not and particularly recycling boxes and kitchen caddies have been used for other purposes such as removal boxes, garden tool boxes and outdoor toy boxes.

A substantial number of recycling boxes are used at allotments.

In addition, there is evidence to suggest that certain households make repeated requests periodically for the same containers at considerable cost annually to the authority and ultimately the council taxpayer, said the report.

This has a negative impact on the environment due to an increase in CO2 emissions.

The Environment Overview & Scrutiny Committee met in September and were supportive of introducing charges at the lowest rate of proposed options.

If this option is approved, the charges for delivery of replacement containers will be: kitchen caddy for food waste, £5; recycling box and lid, £5; blue recycling bin, £10; garden waste bin, £10; 240 litre refuse bin, £10; and 360/660/1100 litre refuse bin, £20.

The proposal will be considered by cabinet this afternoon.