Binned recyclables sorted further

Straits Times 8 Feb 09;

We refer to last Sunday's letter, 'Waste firm dumps all items together', by Mr Soh Ah Yuen.

Although the National Environment Agency (NEA) has been educating the public on proper recycling, the items put into the recycling bins are not well segregated and need further sorting.

Some public waste collectors (PWCs) therefore collect recyclable wastes from the bins and put them into the same vehicle and send them to sorting facilities for sorting into paper, plastics, glass, metals, clothing and so on.

These are then sent to recycling facilities to be processed.

The NEA requires the PWCs to provide monthly returns on the amount of each type of recyclables collected, and also conducts random audit checks on the collection of recyclables.

We thank Mr Soh for his feedback. Where separate recycling bins are provided, we encourage the public to put their segregated recyclables into the appropriate bins. Meanwhile, we will also work with the PWCs to improve on their collection methods.

Ong Seng Eng
Director
Resource Conservation Department
National Environment Agency

Waste firm dumps all items together
Straits Times 1 Feb 09;

Waste recycling is here to stay, both as a means of preventing the depletion of natural resources and to arrest global warming.

To this end, I feel that the authorities here have done quite a lot.

To encourage our population to recycle, bins of at least two colours are provided in places like petrol kiosks, shopping malls and the heartlands.

As a result of this, I have been religiously separating my discarded items before depositing them into the relevant bins placed in the open field fronting my block.

But I am now beginning to wonder if I am wasting my effort because, a few days ago, I saw workers from the waste collection company putting all the recyclable waste from the two bins into the same compaction wagon.

I hope the authorities can comment if the above practice is the approved method. If so, action should be taken to remove the extra bins. This will make our landscape and streetscape less congested.

Moreover, it is an eyesore to have so many bins all over our island. It will also help the operators to save money.

Soh Ah Yuen