BASINGSTOKE and Deane continues to be one of the worst-performing local authorities in Hampshire for recycling.

Annual figures published by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) show the amount of waste sent for recycling composting or reuse between April 2013 and March 2014 stayed at the same level as last year – 25 per cent.

A small crumb of comfort is Basingstoke and Deane was just one of two local councils in Hampshire to avoid a fall in recycling rates, with 11 other local authorities, including top performer Eastleigh Borough Council, recording a drop in their figures.

However, despite the static figure, Basingstoke and Deane remains the fourth worst local authority in the county for the amount of rubbish it recycles – and it is the 17th worst in the country.

Former Basingstoke and Deane mayor Councillor Martin Biermann, one of the borough’s keenest environmental campaigners, believes more needs to be done to encourage recycling.

He said: “I would start with food waste. I think that has massive potential. It is heavy and it is smelly so people want it removed quickly, and it has got fantastic potential for fertilisers or producing energy, or both. I am not saying go straight into it, but we should look at it seriously and decide if that is for us.”

Cllr Hayley Eachus, who took over as the Cabinet member responsible for environment in May, defended the borough’s recycling performance, telling The Gazette: “I am happy with the figures in that they haven’t dropped, but I certainly want to see an increase.

“They don’t take into account plastics recycling, which we have now put in place so we are going to get an increase, in recycling (next year), and we have also seen an increase in Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment banks.”

When asked if recycling food waste could be the way forward, Cllr Eachus added: “I have considered that but it is another bin and I am not sure that is what people want.

“It is not an easy thing to do and it is not practical for some people, and the other question is where does it go?

“The anaerobic digester is miles away and we will have lorries travelling far to take it. We can’t use that (the anaerobic digester in Dummer) for food waste. We have to bear in mind that it has a knock-on effect on climate change.”

A report on how the borough council can improve the recycling rate will go to the community, environment and partnerships committee in January.