A group of councillors in South Gloucestershire is claiming that the local Council is missing out on recycling a large amount of plastic.
South Gloucestershire Council recently introduced collection of plastic bottles from residents’ doorsteps as part of a new recycling programme. The authority has subsequently withdrawn plastic recycling banks from a number of locations across the area claiming that they are not needed.
However, with the new doorstep collection regime, residents can only recycle plastic bottles and SITA, the Council’s waste contractors, will not empty residents’ plastic recycling bags if they contain anything other than plastic bottles. Previously, residents could use the recycling banks to recycle any plastic containers made of Type 1 (PET) or Type 2 plastic (HDPE) – the plastics that most bottles are made from.
Cllr Pat Rooney, Labour’s spokesperson for recycling explained:
“Most plastic bottles are made of type 1 (PET) or type 2 (HDPE) plastic. There are, however, a large number of plastic items that are not bottle-shaped but which are made from the same types of plastic as bottles and could be recycled. The Council is, however, refusing to allow anything other than bottles to be placed in the recycling bags.”
In the summer of 2007, complaints by Labour councillors led to the Council allowing residents to put non-bottle shaped plastic containers made from Type 1 or Type 2 plastics into the recycling banks. Now the councillors want to see the Council sending out the same message with the doorstep collection.
Deputy leader of the Labour Group, Cllr Andy Perkins, added:
“I believe the Council has a role in increasing awareness about recycling and alerting people to what can and can’t be recycled. Most plastics now carry recycling symbols so it is quite straightforward to check whether a plastic container is made of the right type of plastic for recycling. If we engage people more in recycling, it can only help to increase the amount of material generally that is recycled.”
Source: Labour Councillors on South Gloucestershire Council
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