Recycling/rubbish

PDC continues to be gung-ho about its dire new wheelie bin collection scheme.
As instanced in its latest over-the-top press release about the district is meeting govt recycling targes.
Somehow I think the stats it puts forward need to be given a more decent examination.
And maybe a rather fuller explanation of what the scheme involved.
You would have thought, wouldn't you, that if 14,000 homes had recycling boxes.
And then they increased it to 21,000 homes.
Then, logic would say that the 16% recycling rate would increase to 24%.
If you add to that an increase in what is being taken away, like cardboard and textiles, and that's a further 10 maybe 12 per cent increase overall.
Wouldn't that point to a 27% level of recycling with just a modest and not that expensive increase in the cost to us the council taxpayer of providing a further 7,000 green boxes for kerbside recycling.
So for what could be as little as a 5% increase in recycling we are paying £3.29 on an average council tax bill and thousands more overall to publicise the generally unwanted and somewhat resented scheme.
A couple of councillors didn't vote for its introduction.
The Lib Dems backed it to a man, and to a woman. But then they are (unthinkingly at times) in favour of anything that smacks of a "green initiative".
But I think Colin Bright certainly should be applauded for defying what was said to be a three-line Tory whip on the issue. I'm pretty sure that Gary Suttle didn't vote for it either.
The latest self-congratulatory missive from PDC is on its website.
But this is what it says anyway:

Recycle For Purbeck Achieves Its Statutory Target In The First Month Alone

The Recycle for Purbeck Scheme smashed through its statutory recycling target in its first month and doubled the district’s recycling rates since before the scheme began.


The results, which were officially confirmed last week, showed that 32%, around 300 tonnes, of all household waste in Purbeck was recycled in October. That’s equivalent to the weight of approximately 50 elephants!

The Government’s target for recycling in Purbeck is 30% in a full year and the recycling rate in the district prior to the scheme was 16%, one of the lowest in Dorset.

Exceeding the statutory recycling target in the first month alone is a reflection of the tremendous efforts and co-operation of the residents of Purbeck with 100% of households taking part in the scheme in some areas.

The success of the scheme so far means that the amount of waste sent to landfill has already significantly decreased and the cost implications to the council tax payer, through Government penalties and the rising cost of landfill tax, can be considerably reduced.

The overwhelming response to the scheme, the huge volume of recyclable waste that has to be collected and the festive period has lead to some recent delays in the collection services, however, extra lorries are being laid on to cope with the demand to help avoid any future delays.

Going forward the Council will be investigating the possibility, at a reasonable cost to the householder, of extending its recycling scheme to include items such as kitchen waste, heavy card and plastics.

Councillor Nick Cake, Environment spokesperson sad: “This is a fantastic result and one that can be wholly attributed to the efforts and support of the residents of Purbeck. We thank our residents for their patience and co-operation over the recent weeks, particularly during the festive period which presented its own challenges. Only three months in, the scheme is still very much in its infancy, and we continue to strive to improve the efficiency of our waste collection service in the interests of everyone involved”.

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