Dumbfounded by recycling revelation

I was left totally dumbfounded yesterday by the RBWM Council (October 31).

On Tuesday the media had a field day with reports Britain is likely to endure a ‘pay as you throw’ policy on refuse collection, unless we start recycling more.

On Wednesday I came out of my house to collect my bins only to find a man sorting through my recycling and throwing half of it back into the  box.
He apologised and went on to explain that despite all the plastics I had placed in the purple box being recyclable (I check everything for the recycling mark before throwing it away) the company the RBWM council use for recycling are only interested in plastic drinks and milk bottles.

They do not want recyclable food trays, yoghurt pots, fruit punnets or indeed the film wrappings. I was also told that despite being recyclable we are no longer to place our recycling in carrier bags.
The bin man in question told me this week they are having to sort through every household’s recycling to take only what they need, but in future if your recycling is ‘contaminated’ with unwanted recyclable materials your bins won’t be emptied.

Just what is the point? The supermarkets are being forced by the Government and pressure groups to spend a fortune on finding sustainable sources and environmentally friendly packaging.

This is no doubt having an impact on the cost of food – I mean who else is going to foot the bill except the consumer? Yet here we have a council which doesn’t want to play its part.

Is this a case of the RBWM council wanting to be seen to ‘do their bit’, but to cut costs have a contract with a company incapable of full recycling?

In this area we pay one of the highest council  ax charges in the UK so we should expect better. If the council intends to introduce a ‘pay as you throw’ charge, then it needs to introduce a more comprehensive recycling scheme first.
I for one will not be paying a fee to throw away items which are perfectly recyclable and which I am prepared to separate from my general household waste, just because the council is in partnership with a company incapable of full recycling.

SHANNI BAUM
Fishery Road
Bray on Thames