UK recycling material 'being dumped as landfill'

Andy Bloxham, The Telegraph 2 Mar 08;

Thousands of tons of material put out to be recycled by environmentally conscious Britons secretly ends up at landfill, it has emerged.

Around 240,000 tons of paper, glass and plastic is either dumped or burned after being collected in green bins and bags by local council staff, according to the Local Government Association, which represents town halls across the country.

However, the true amount could be much higher as only around half of local authorities submitted their data.

Environmentalists and Tory MPs said the figures showed the Government was not giving councils enough help in recycling effectively.

Michael Warhurst, a senior recycling campaigner for Friends of the Earth, said: "It is a vast amount and it shows that the way many councils are approaching recycling is just not working.

"The Government needs to be much clearer on how councils can recycle effectively and take charge of a worrying situation.

"Everything that householders put out to be recycled should actually be recycled."

Eric Pickles, the Shadow Local Government Secretary, said it made a mockery of people's efforts to separate cans, bottles and paper at home.

He said: "I think families across the country will be shocked to learn that the cans and bottles they dutifully put out for recycling are being secretly dumped.

"Most people want to do their bit but this sort of thing undermines confidence."

The LGA surveyed all 410 councils in England and Wales to compile its recycling and waste disposal figures for 2006-7 but only around half responded. The figures showed in some local authorities as much as one in every eight items put out for recycling ended up on a tip.

In Worcestershire, for example, 110,459 tons of recycling was put out but 14,509 tons was dumped or burned. Similar amounts were dumped by Tynedale and Wansbeck councils in the north-east and Kings Lynn in Norfolk.

Kings Lynn Conservative Councillor Derek Prodger, who represents the Bedwardine ward, said large loads of recycling could be sent to landfill because of a small amount of contamination. There are currently two main ways in which councils can operate a recycling scheme: 'co-mingling' where cans, bottles and paper are mixed together to be sorted later, and kerb-side collection, where householders sort the materials before collection.

However, recycling material can be contaminated by householders not cleaning containers properly or by bottles breaking among cans and paper. All that contaminated material is then either incinerated or sent to landfill.

Environmental campaigners say co-mingling allows councils to massage figures by claiming they are recycling waste which actually ends up at landfill. Paul Bettison, chairman of the Local Government Association Environment Board, said the 240,000 tons was only 1.6 per cent of the total recycling material collected.

He added: "Local people, businesses and councils work tirelessly to boost recycling rates."