Rubbish Disposal

[Headfry]

My friends garden waste bin was not emptied because she had put pototo peelings in there. She (angry) called her council and was told that if she had peeled the potatoes in the garden that would have been ok, same for apple cores!!! the lady even said sorry to her and that her hands were tied.
angry or what...the powers that be dont help us to recycle, they just clobber us when we get it wrong

[Two_Sheds]

you don't believe your council actually recycles your green waste do you?

we watched our green bins being tipped into the same truck as the black bins. It all goes to landfill

Oh, and BTW, there is no point recycling, say, paper, if people don't buy recycled paper goods. I always buy recycled loo roll, even if its a bit scratchier than the luxury soft quilted one with pretty pictures on

I leave excess packaging in the shop too. I started doing this because I use a bike and its easier to get loose stuff into my panniers than big square boxes of stuff like cereal. I even take out the unwanted sections of my weekend newspaper and leave that in the shop (well, someone else might want my Sport, Travel and Money sections

Oh, and I also send back that unwanted junkmail that the Post Office sticks thru my door (I put it back in the nearest pillar box, along with any red rubber bands that are left on the pavement). Arsey aren't I

[moggssue]

Dont know if it's true but I've been told (by someone who I trust toknow that kind of thing!) that recycling paper is as bad for the environment as not because of the chemicals used to clean the paper in the first place if nothing else. Newspaper print is bleached off and the bleach in turn has to be removed .... as with so many issues, I don't think we are told the whole truth in order to make an informed decision and to do the best for our planet.
TwoSheds - do you re address the junk mail when you send it back or just put it in the post as it is?

[Headfry]

ooooh Junk mail....
I love the pre paid envelopes.... I fill each with each others junk mail, they have to pay the postage- usually 'over' as they even get the original evenvelope back along with any other junk!- keeps Mr Postie employed. and I feel fab sending them back another companies junk mail.
The best was sent to a double glazing firm, they got in their return paid envelope...
1x flyer from another D. glazing firm
1x Believe in god fly'er
and 1x green party fly'er
all of which came through my door.
I do not do the above to charities.....most important, they do good work! most of them!

[moggssue]

haha, I love that idea, think I'll start doing that as well! If we all sent companies each others junk mail do yo think they'd get the hint and leave us alone?!

[Waffler]

I love it!!! I'm gonna do that too! That's made my day - can't wait for more junk mail (hmm - maybe not!)

[Protea]

This week i was astounded by the opinions of a couple of people on a college couse i'm on at the mo - they were horrified at the thought that they might be getting only fortnightly rubbish collection soon!

I explained to them that when i moved into my house 2 years ago, we ONLY had fortnightly rubbish collection. I was concerned at first, more about how quickly the bin would fill up, but in actual fact we have good recycling facilities (green wheely bin for paper, card, plastic bottles, tins, and green bags for garden waste, have to do glass ourselves, but not a problem). THis meant that once we got ourselves organised, and installed 2 compost bins in our garden - we have hardly any rubbish at all! They thought composting all their kitchen waste was disgusting, and said well, they only had a small garden! One of tem also hardly recycles anything - it makes me so mad!

It amazes me just how lazy people can be - recycling is not an effort and i love the fact that some weeks there is only 1 lonely kitchen bin bag in the the black wheely bin

[The Doctor]

My local council has been doing fortnightly bins for months. I was a bit miffed when it started, but if they also give you the recycling services to go with it, then it works.

The fortnightly wheelie bin does not get emptied if it is overflowing, nor will they take extra bags left with it, as an incentive to keep down the amount in it. But we get a weekly recycling collection, and they will take as much as you leave out for metal, glass, cardboard and paper.

In addition, we get a fornightly 'green' collection as long as it's in a green bag that you have to supply, and they are due to start plastic bottles fortnightly from next month.

We all still moan about them, but it seems from comments here that they are probably at the forefront of recycling!

The thing that really gets my goat at the moment is all the companies who insists on posting out stuff in envelopes with clear plastic windows, to reduce their own cost of having to print the address on the envelope!

[rustylady]

Our local council is really picky about what they will recycle. Apparently they bought the wrong machinery when they set up the scheme!! You have to be careful what sort of plastic you put in the bin, they will take paper and cardboard, but not polystyrene, etc, etc, and I'm pretty sure it all goes to landfill anyway. Glass we have to take to our local bottle bank (OK for me as I have a bike, but what about elderly people who live alone and have no transport?)

[jacob marley]

ooooh Junk mail....
I love the pre paid envelopes.... I fill each with each others junk mail, they have to pay the postage- usually 'over' as they even get the original evenvelope back along with any other junk!- keeps Mr Postie employed. and I feel fab sending them back another companies junk mail.
The best was sent to a double glazing firm, they got in their return paid envelope...
1x flyer from another D. glazing firm
1x Believe in god fly'er
and 1x green party fly'er
all of which came through my door.
I do not do the above to charities.....most important, they do good work! most of them!

It is not called recycling it is called redistribution i have practiced it for years just think of all the people you keep in employment the postman the office staff to open it and the cleaning staff to recycle it into the waste dept at least four people that you are helping to keep in workjacob

[Alison]

I even take out the unwanted sections of my weekend newspaper and leave that in the shop (well, someone else might want my Sport, Travel and Money sections

Can I have the sport and travel sections please??????

ooooh Junk mail....
I love the pre paid envelopes.... I fill each with each others junk mail, they have to pay the postage- usually 'over' as they even get the original evenvelope back along with any other junk!- keeps Mr Postie employed. and I feel fab sending them back another companies junk mail.
The best was sent to a double glazing firm, they got in their return paid envelope...
1x flyer from another D. glazing firm
1x Believe in god fly'er
and 1x green party fly'er
all of which came through my door.
I do not do the above to charities.....most important, they do good work! most of them!

It is not called recycling it is called redistribution i have practiced it for years just think of all the people you keep in employment the postman the office staff to open it and the cleaning staff to recycle it into the waste dept at least four people that you are helping to keep in workjacob

I assume you're both joking? Why don't you simply subscribe to the preferentional mail thingy so you don't get it in the first place? One of the best things I ever did, don't get offered any where near so much rubbish now and it saves on wasted paper etc.

Re the bin collection discussion, I'm all for 2 weekly collections, we hardly produce any non compostable rubbish by means of not wasting things we buy and being picky by picking things without excessive packaging. Most stuff we have can be composted or reused for something else. As far as improving the kerb side collection from the council, stop moaning that your council is useless and actually contact them to explain what you want, raise a petition if you want, at least you're activly trying to improve things then and funnily enough the councils do respond when enough people push them, especially if they can look good when doing it. And yes, some recylcling is simply put in land fill but most is not so keep on doing it. Sorry, bad day today but this kind of thing really annoys me.

[Two_Sheds]

....just think of all the people you keep in employment the postman the office staff to open it and the cleaning staff to recycle it into the waste dept at least four people that you are helping to keep in workjacob

so let's set fire to our homes and keep the firemen in a job...

[Birdie Wife]

Living in the middle of nowhere, as I do, the council would laugh heartily if I asked them for a green bin. Instead I save my cans, glass and paper and recycle them at the nearest communal point, 15 miles away. If I can recycle, 99% of the population can too!! There's no excuse!

[bubblewrap]

so let's set fire to our homes and keep the firemen in a job...

Or fall over & break a leg (hospital staff)

[zebedee]

The debate on fortnightly collections makes me smile.

Whilst on hoilday in Brittany (St Briac) at a friends pad we were informed to put all of our recycling in the bins provided in a special recycling area of the village (every commune in Franch has one) and that everything else should go into the dustbin which is emptied every MONDAY and FRIDAY.

Oh and the local equilavent to council tax is £192 a year.

If I went somewhere like that, I would be SOOOOO tempted to stay!