LAST AUTUMN, residents were surprised to find out that paper and carboard soggy from the rain was no longer recyclable.
And we waited for a solution. More than half a year, and tonnes of wet cardboard later, we may have a solution.
On Thursday, July 30. the borough council executive voted to approve plastic sacks for recycling. No more black boxes.
But there are plenty of questions circling in the borough.
Won’t the bin men be frustrated at opening each bag for each house?
How do we make sure the plastic bags don’t float down the street on the next windy collection day?
And why can’t we have wheelie bins?
The wheelie bin debate has been ongoing for some time. Our neighbouring councils have been using them for years. But according to the borough council, the wheelie bins are “not compatible” with the current Veolia waste trucks.
That seems an odd statement, when each bin day, refuse collectors are seen loading the recycling from three houses into a wheelie bin, before slotting it into the back of the truck and dumping the rubbish.
Either the household wheelie bins are a different shape, or someone is talking rubbish. And the new plastic sacks are not made from hessian — contrary to council statements. They are a waterproof plastic weave, not a natural fibre. Is this a case of greenwashing?
