Recycling in East Cambs Receives Cash Injection
RECYCLING in East Cambs is being propped up by an extra investment of £120,000. Around £30,000 will be spent on delivering a year s supply of black bin bags – as agreed by councillors on Monday – but £90,000 will be spent on sustainable energy promotion
RECYCLING in East Cambs is being propped up by an extra investment of £120,000.
Around £30,000 will be spent on delivering a year's supply of black bin bags - as agreed by councillors on Monday - but £90,000 will be spent on "sustainable energy promotion and recycling initiatives."
After a string of complaints from residents about the performance of private contractor Veolia - paid £1.2million a year to collect household waste - the council has been forced to clean up its act and take the delivery of black and clear plastic bags, for plastic waste, in-house.
Members of the Liberal Democrat group asked that delivery of brown sacks also be taken in-house, but their request was rejected by the Conservatives.
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Lib Dem councillor Ian Allen said: "By including four brown paper sacks for each home with the year's supply of plastic sacks, we could have relaunched the service where residents can send their cooked or uncooked food waste, cardboard and garden
waste for composting. But instead we are spending a further £30,000 when we
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should be enforcing our contract with Veolia, our waste collection
contractor. In turn, Veolia is saving distribution costs."
The waste management team at the council also has a £15,000 budget shortfall, it was announced last week.
East Cambridgeshire residents recycle only 36 per cent of their waste whereas neighbouring Huntingdonshire is way ahead at 62 per cent.
The Government wants all local authorities to hit 40 per cent by 2010, and 50 per cent by 2020, or face a landfill tax. All Cambridgeshire authorities have already hit the 40 per cent target - except East Cambridgshire.
Lib Dem Cllr Dr Bob Stevens added: "Many residents have given up using brown sacks and now put their food waste and cardboard in their rubbish bags. This is because they have run out of brown sacks, that should have been replaced for free,
or the sacks have blown away down the street.
