RESIDENTS in a rural borough have been accused of putting their waste paper and cardboard out messily.

Now Ribble Valley householders are being asked by the council to put it out for collection more tidily.

They receive white sacks for the paper and cardboard but often they are not big enough for all of it.

The amount of waste paper and cardboard recycled by Ribble Valley households has shot up in recent years to around 140 tonnes a month.

The boom in online shopping has meant an increase in waste paper and cardboard left out for collection.

Ribble Valley Borough Council’s waste management officer Linda Boyer has revealed that high winds are blowing some of it across roads and streets, leaving neighbourhoods untidy and householders disgruntled.

She said: “The white sack service has been valued by local residents for many years, but in recent months there has been an upsurge in the amount of paper and cardboard being left for collection.

“A lot of the waste is being blown over the street, so we are asking residents to help us continue delivering an efficient service by putting it out tidily, flattening or stacking boxes inside each other and putting paper in a white sack.

“And if your white sack is full, or you don’t have one, simply put your paper in one of the cardboard boxes and our lads will take it away.”

Waste paper and cardboard is collected from households in the north of Ribble Valley on the same day as green bins, while in the south of the borough it is collected on ‘blue bin day’.

Householders are advised to flatten and tied cardboard boxes with tape or string, or keep one box whole and put flattened boxes inside, then placed next to your white sack and bins.

They are also urged to put the white sacks at the roadside collection point by 7.30am, or the night before.

The council adds that toilet roll inner tubes, cereal packets, food boxes and junk mail can all be recycled