Friends of the Earth Survey shows flaws in Leeds' recycling strategy (Leeds Liberal Democrats)

Leeds Liberal Democrats <info@leedslibdems.org.uk>

Friends of the Earth Survey shows flaws in Leeds' recycling strategy

March 22, 2004 12:00 AM

Friends of the Earth's survey of doorstep recycling collections by English Local Authorities shows that Leeds still has a lot to learn from elsewhere, says Liberal Democrat Development and Sustainability Spokesperson Cllr Stewart Golton (Lib Dem, Weetwood).

Cllr Golton said "Leeds has come out reasonably well in the survey, but there's plenty of room for improvement.

"I'm particularly disappointed by the failure of Leeds City Council to provide any kind of doorstep recycling facility for garden waste. Many other authorities provide free or subsidised composting bins to residents, or offer a collection service for garden waste, Leeds does neither. That just isn't acceptable.

"Friends of the Earth recommend more frequent collections of materials for recycling than the monthly collection those lucky enough to have green bins currently get. Weekly or fortnightly collections are much more convenient for householders, meaning that more people are likely to recycle their waste. In the long term this would mean that black bins would take longer to fill, so collections of these could be reduced to once a fortnight. Also, most Councils in Yorkshire offer doorstep collection of glass for recycling, but Leeds still doesn't. This is something I'd like to see very soon.

"I'm well aware that some people are less motivated than others to recycle for environmental reasons, but the bottom line is that as well as any damage to the environment, household waste costs huge amounts of money to dispose of. In last week's budget, Gordon Brown raised the tax that must be paid by Councils sending waste to landfill, and has promised that it will more than double over the next few years. So any increase in the waste we recycle actually saves the Council - and Council Tax payers - a fortune."

Notes

1. The Friends of the Earth survey and accompanying press release can be obtained on-line at http://www.foe.co.uk/

2. This week's budget included an increase in the Landfill Tax from £14 to £15 per tonne. Gordon Brown has signed up to an agreement that will see this tax increase at a rate of at least £3 a year from now on, until it reaches £35 per tonne.

3. Leeds spent £4.434 million on Landfill Tax during 2002/03. The cost of collecting and disposing of the waste must also be met by the Council.