Recycling: the cost of going green

Councils are moaning about the costs of recycling. Would you be willing to pay more for better facilities, and should you even have to? asks Jill Insley

Would you be willing to pay more council tax in order to improve recycling facilities? Photograph: Graeme Robertson

In Observer Cash this week, Jon Robins writes about how some councils are failing to make the most of recycling opportunities. Although many of us are willing to spend our evenings happily sorting plastic from glass and cardboard from paper, local authorities are not willing to do the same. Instead, they chuck it into one big container with everyone else's rubbish and sort the whole thing out later - a process called commingling.

This just isn't good enough. According to a newly created alliance - the Campaign for Real Recycling - up to 20% of commingled waste is so contaminated it can't be reused. This compares to 1% when the waste is kept separate.

Councils argue that collecting mixed waste costs them less and means recycling isn't just the preserve of the dedicated few who can be bothered to sort their own rubbish. But surely the proposed extra charges for people who produce too much rubbish will sort this out?

Observer Cash and Friends of the Earth have put together a letter you can download and send to your council if you feel it should be doing a better job - it also asks for information about the ultimate destiny of the rubbish you recycle.

If your council was willing to separate rubbish, would you be willing to pay more council tax to make it happen? Would you - and your neighbours - take the time and trouble to separate everything you throw out?

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