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East Lothian bin collection dates
- Add your dates to Google, Apple or Outlook calendar
- Get an email the evening before
- Print an A4 sheet for the fridge
Bins in East Lothian
These are the containers used in East Lothian. Which ones a home has depends on its address.
Food waste and recycling
Garden waste
Brown bin
Container details
The container pictures and words are East Lothian Council's own. This may not be every container it uses.
Greyed-out bin icons are placeholders where the container type or colour is not confirmed.
Container descriptions checked 17 September 2026; list of collections built from East Lothian Council's own service names 22 September 2026.
Order, book and apply
- Green bin - non recyclable wasteEast Lothian Council
- Garden waste bin and subscription guidanceEast Lothian Council
- Garden waste collectionsEast Lothian Council
- Food waste collectionsEast Lothian Council
- Get rid of a bulky itemEast Lothian Council
- Recycling centres and tipsEast Lothian Council
- Get rid of a bulky itemEast Lothian Council
Links checked 17 September 2026.
Missed bin or a problem
Tell East Lothian Council first - it can only fix what it knows about.
Missed-bin guidance checked 20 September 2026.
- Make a complaint to East Lothian CouncilIf reporting it didn't fix it.
Complaint didn't work either? Ask your councillors
If you've already reported the problem and used the council's complaints process, your unitary authority councillors can take up a repeated problem or a wider service failure. Find and write to my unitary authority councillors on East Lothian Council.
WriteToThem is an independent mySociety service. You'll enter your postcode there before choosing who to contact.
Complaint routes verified 6 September 2026.
Local bins and recycling news
AI-generated summary, reviewed before publication. Checked 18 September 2026.
East Lothian increased its optional garden-waste permit from £35 to £40 for 2026/27, citing reduced budgets and rising costs. The council’s May announcement said permit holders would receive fortnightly collections from 31 August 2026 to 27 August 2027, while garden-waste disposal at recycling centres remained free. Separately, on 4 June 2026 the council reported suspension of wood and laminate recycling at Dunbar, Kinwegar and North Berwick because contractors were reaching storage capacity. It apologised and said it could not give a restoration date. That report does not establish whether the disruption continues now.
- Register for a 2026/2027 garden waste collection permit ... — www.eastlothian.gov.uk
- Council suspends wood recycling amid ‘significant disruption’ in Scotland - letsrecycle.com — www.letsrecycle.com