Recycling.. Why bother?

Man of Honour
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17 Feb 2003
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Chelmsford
Everyday, like millions across the country, I do my bit and sort out our plastics, card, paper, plastics etc and place them in separate containers for collection. I hate it, it get's under feet and having to remember the different collection times is a pain but you get a small feeling that your doing your bit but then you read something like this..


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...ents-sort-rubbish-boxes--dumped-together.html


After years of goverment advisory dictating that we should be doing more to recycle, this is really isn't a good insentive. I'm sure plenty of people already wonder whether these items are recycled after all. It appears not.

Plus when you think of the unrealisd cost of recycling and it's own impact on the envionment. We have to wash our glass, jars and plastic bottles with hot water which is sourced from gas and this is even before they are processed at the recycle plant.

When it comes to collection day, you can guarantee a trail of plastic bottles everywhere the trucks have been. The other week, my kids sorted the the recycling and accidentally put plastics in with the glass. The collectors just tipped them out onto the road side for them blow all down the road.

So the question is, is this really a conservative effort to help the environment or is it just a vizard to make it look like targets are being met?
 
Associate
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Derby
I was under the impression that plastics CURRENTLY don't get recycled, becuase it costs too much to send abroad for it to be melted down or whatever, and that everything else was recycled.
 
Soldato
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3,840
Did you read to the end? The lorries are taking it to be recycled but the larger lorry had difficulties entering the small cul-de-sac.
 
Soldato
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Here and There...
What really annoys me is the huge sums of money a company like Veolia make out of it, they are the ones making the profit so they should be doing the work ie sorting and filtering not us the customers.
 
Caporegime
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FR+UK
I know of a few places where the recycling goes to landfill, it really does beggar belief.

In fact, I've written to my council to try and find out where our recycling here goes. We're getting the Blue bin in November (everything goes in at once), and I'm hoping that it does get recycled.
 
Soldato
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Manchester City Centre
eh?
I'm unsure as to the source of your frustration, this one council has opted to have single point recycling collection for 50 roads in the area because they're too small for the recycling truck to get down. I presume they hadn't been told specifically because the communication will go out to thousands of roads.

As for washing your recyclables with hot water, I'm pretty sure a quick rinse with cold water will suffice, they don't have to be clean enough to use again straight out of your recycling bin :confused:

Here we have quite a good system, two bins which most recyclables can go into, paper, cans, glass, plastic bottles and then a black bin for general waste, the recyclables alternate and the black bin goes every week.
 
Caporegime
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What really annoys me is the huge sums of money a company like Veolia make out of it, they are the ones making the profit so they should be doing the work ie sorting and filtering not us the customers.
Are you sure? The cost to the council would then go up, which would in turn put your council tax up as well.
 
Soldato
Joined
15 Jan 2004
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10,185
Who's to say that it's beng put in a landfill from the picture? Some councils mix all the recyclable content together for logistics reasons, and then sort it all out at the plant.

Plus when you think of the unrealisd cost of recycling and it's own impact on the envionment. We have to wash our glass, jars and plastic bottles with hot water which is sourced from gas and this is even before they are processed at the recycle plant.

Why do you use hot water? They don't need to be sparkling clean as it gets melted down anyway. Just run it under the cold tap. And despite this, it's still cheaper to recylce and it means less landfill sites.
 
Man of Honour
OP
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17 Feb 2003
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Chelmsford
I know of a few places where the recycling goes to landfill, it really does beggar belief.

In fact, I've written to my council to try and find out where our recycling here goes. We're getting the Blue bin in November (everything goes in at once), and I'm hoping that it does get recycled.

I wish we had a blue bin for all but then there's the cost of of sorting the other end.

We have a brown bin for garden waste which gets collected once every 2 weeks and once a month during winter. Total waste of time.
 
Man of Honour
OP
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17 Feb 2003
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29,636
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Chelmsford
Why do you use hot water? They don't need to be sparkling clean as it gets melted down anyway. Just run it under the cold tap. And despite this, it's still cheaper to recylce and it means less landfill sites.

Apparently it's a requirement although i don't bother too much now. Mind you, have you smelt empty milk bottles after two weeks.. ?
 
Soldato
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6 Jan 2009
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Location
Hertfordshire
Agreed go back to old glass milk bottles, we seem to have gone backwards.


On a more serious note i have had many arguments with our local bin men (and hate to be stereo typical but most of them are *****) over them not collecting bins due to many reasons, even though i follow the rules down to the last detail. And make sure all my family do.

I feel most of them like a power trip now and then.
 
Soldato
Joined
15 Jan 2004
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10,185
Apparently it's a requirement although i don't bother too much now. Mind you, have you smelt empty milk bottles after two weeks.. ?

They smell fine because I wash then out with cold water. :p

Here though, not only have to sort out the recyclable goods, but I also have to take it to a recycle point myself in the car. Can't say it really bothers me. Although we do at least get weekly rubbish collections.

Also, why is your title "pUnderboss"?
 
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