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Greens stay
cool on plastic recycling plan
PLASTIC bottles and cardboard boxes will be collected from
your front door in a new recycling scheme from next week.
From Monday, householders will be able to put out cardboard
and plastic bottles into their green boxes – along with
newspapers, cans and glass.
But revelations that the plastic could be sorted into bales
and then sent to the Far East to be turned into more plastic
goods have been met with criticism by Camden’s Green Party.
Spokesperson Sian Berry welcomed the plan – but called
for an enquiry into the cost and environmental savings the new
scheme will have.
She said: “It is a step forward from chucking it in the
bin – but it is another contract with a waste management
company based in Kent, and that means there has to be a big
question mark as to the environmental cost of carrying the bottles
there, and where the recycled plastic goes afterwards. There
is a need for an audit over the effectiveness of these schemes.
Lib-Dem leader councillor Keith Moffitt. He said: “We will
not support the scheme until there has been a full environmental
audit on the costs involved.”
The Town Hall has bought a fleet of new seven-tonne trucks to
carry the extra rubbish.
It will be driven to a Kent depot run by rubbish specialists
Grovesnor Waste Management, where it will be sorted. They already
deal with Camden’s refuse under a five-borough contract
with the North London Waste Authority.
A spokesman for Grovesnor Waste Company admitted that the final
destination for much of Camden’s recycled bottles could
be factories in the Far East – but added there were plans
for a new recycling plant to be open by April in London that
would be able to use the plastic.
They said: “There is a market in the Far East for type
of raw material but more companies closer to home are now using
recycled plastics.”
Executive member for the environment Councillor John Thane said:
“Currently Camden is the best borough in London for it’s
recycling rates and when we questioned residents they said overwhelmingly
they wanted the be able to recycle plastic and cardboard too.
This will help cut down on rubbish dumped in landfill sites.” |
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