| Archive for Downsizer For an ethical approach to consumption |
| AnneandMike |
I'm ashamed!On the news this morning they were reporting about a council that was refusing to empty recycling bins which had the wrong contents. They were interviewing this chap who had put plastic, etc in his green waste bin. When asked "Do you care?" he responded "no, not at all. Lots of other people will also be putting the wrong things in the bin."I'm ashamed to be considered a member of the same species!! 
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| Barefoot Andrew |
A neighbour of my OH not only puts everything in the bin - no recycling whatsoever - but also puts their overflow in unused bin space of the house next door... 
A. |
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| Northern_Lad |
I always put my overflow in my neighbours' bins. However, as I can't be botherred to take my own bin out (or put anything in it) my overflow is all my rubbish: generally one carrier bag a fortnight. Tax me now! |
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| hamster |
Re: I'm ashamed!
Better not read the furore in the Daily Mail today about fortnightly bin collections then... http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=450263&in_page_id=1770&ct=5 |
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| JB |
I find I do the opposite. As I almost never fill my bins I put my neighbours overflow into my bin (well otherwise their overflow would be a target for the local foxes and vermin) |
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| Ian33568 |
When in the UK we were very methodical in ensuring the correct waste was put into the correct bin - however I can fully understand people's frustrations - the council employed bin inspectors to check bins before they were collected - a system of warnings and fines were issued. Stickers on your bin etc....
One chap got his knuckles wrapped for putting bought flowers in his green bin - another got warned for putting card in a paper bin - there is a lot of mis-information about recycling around - clearer and less complicated rules need to be introduced. Here in northern spain - there are recycling points in nearly every village - emptied weekly and much less confusing than in the UK - mind you we have to walk to the recylcing bins as there is no doorstep collection - even for houehold waste........its a hard life 
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| lottie |
We had fortnightly collections in Bolton----but most people objected to the extent that councillors lost seats at the local elections and weekly collections were reinstated after the results----you can persuade and encourage people but at the end of the day you can't impose something on people that the [ misguided ] majority oppose when we live in a democracy. | ||||
| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
my view about the whole fortnightly/weekly bin thing is that councils are guilty of rushing things (because they can see money saving ideas)
If you put in excellent recycling facilities that are simple to use, and if you promote these and help folk use them and if there is national lobbying of manufacturers and retailers to cut packaging and if you educate folk that its as much about how you shop or cook as about what you do with waste then and only then you'll find residents completely happy with the idea of less bin collections since there won't be much to collect! As someone put in the paper the other day, how does merely collecting rubbish fortnightly rather than weekly reduce rubbish - it doesn't is the simple answer, unless as this corespondant put, you hope some of it will have rotted in the mean time |
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| Treacodactyl |
Re: I'm ashamed!
I'm still waiting for our council to collect or take plastic for recycling. I know someone who's council does take plastic so save it up until I visit. Even then it's only a couple of types and even then the collection people still don't take everything of the acceptable types. All very confusing and not a good way to encourage people to recycle IMHO. Our council also no longer collects cardboard with the paper, you have to phone a 'hotline' for a special collection.   As ever, they are doing too little too late.
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| lottie |
Bolton had excellent recycling facilities in place and provided us with green bins for compostable waste, paper collection for the hospice and a tub for recyclables like glass/cans/plastic---so there shouldn't have been much to put in the bins----didn't make any difference people didn't like it ---they made their views known at the ballot box and we are back to weekly collections. 
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| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
what didn't they like or was it that the recycling facilities weren't used adequately? Curious as to why it didn't work given things put in place first. |
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| lottie |
they were used to a weekly collection---our council tax is very high so people felt entitled to it and most of them kept stuffing their dustbins anyway so they needed it----the sad truth is most people don't care. | ||||
| hamster |
A lot of people don't seem to care. It's sad.
Incidentally, I realise my earlier post wasn't very constructive - I was just frustrated by all the comments on the DM article by people who complained about only getting their bins emptied fortnightly, instead of weekly, and attacking the councils for cutting corners, when most councils, as far as I know, collect recycling on the other weeks. Which surely costs roughly the same as a rubbish collection... And I also fail to see how anybody can still believe we can use as much as we want and just bung it all in landfill afterwards. There were a lot of comments such as, 'What about people with young children in nappies?' or 'What about all the kitchen waste which will attract rats?' to which I wanted to say, 'Use washable nappies!' or 'Compost!' but I suppose you can't force these kinds of changes on people overnight. I do understand why people can get frustrated. The recycling guidelines can be confusing: it isn't always obvious what can go in, and different councils seem to collect different things, even in nearby areas. This disparate collection also makes me suspicious that perhaps there isn't a coherent national strategy for actually recycling the waste - surely by co-ordinating the different councils, having regional recycling plants and encouraging businesses to use these recycled materials, the system would be more efficient? Sorry, I'm rambling on somewhat - not making a good first impression at all! I'll go and introduce myself on the other board now... |
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| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
not rambling at all and welcome to the site. I agree that there doesn't appear to be a national strategy. I think a lot of it is tied up in individual councils making individual contracts with companies. |
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| Northern_Lad |
Very true, in fact, there's something somewhere that says that Central Government don't want it as a national topic as it's so devisive. All the major parties are avoiding it except at a local level. The answer's very simple: you're given a bin that will be collected every two weeks. Anything that doesn't fit in gets thrown at you while you take your turn in the stocks at the local primary school. |
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| Treacodactyl |
According to the BBC "Councils that have switched from weekly to fortnightly rubbish collections achieve higher recycling rates, a study has suggested."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6590533.stm I've left my rubbish for up to 4 weeks in the bin without a problem. I just wait for a sack to be full before putting it out and as we don't produce much rubbish it can take 4 weeks to be full. We've never had a bin problem on our property with mice, rats, foxes, cats etc as the bin has a lid. There can be the odd problem with flies but a tighter fitting lid would solve that if it bothered me. |
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| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
I can see the DMail headlines now - 'Disease fear over Public Stocks Punishment' Or - New Reality TV show planned 'Celebrity Rubbish Throwing' Or - I was blinded by a tomato ( exclusive; one mans nightmare experience in the stocks) Sorry I'll stop now..
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| Behemoth |
This is clearly ridiculous. The parking around primary schools is terrible. Better done at the local shopping centre with the missiles being returned to the retailers following use. Weirdest thing I put in the bin was some very very tatty stuffed birds. I suppose they would have been better on the compost heap. It was the 70's and there was no diposal guidance back then. |
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| @Calli |
Do you think that the 'don't cares' would have a slightly different attitude if you had to pay for individual binbag collection like we do here?
If its a direct cost then you can look at what you need to throw away and what you can recycle? |
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| lottie |
loads of folk would flytip I bet | ||||
| Mrs Fiddlesticks |
I suspect that would only work if their council tax bill went down by an appropriate amount. There is, I'm sure, the sense that as they feel they already pay for that service then it ought to be delivered as stated. |
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| alison |
We get a lot of fly tipping already, and we are only about 2 miles from the local tip! |
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| gnome |
pretty much like that in my area - certain neighbours in my area just throw their excess rubbish over the nearest wall. untill the council actually start presenting people with fines for inappropriate use of bins many people just won't bother. many people dont care. many people are morons. fact of life. |