Recycling is up to us

Your pressing Cllr Robert Donnell on how he is going to improve the borough’s abysmal record is a welcome action of a community-minded newspaper. The parts of his reply emphasising glass and electrical item recycling are also welcome. He was coy about targets, though: couldn’t he commit to a hard target? Or, even better, a target of six per cent reduction in the total amount of waste produced per person in the borough by yearend, whether or not it is recycled? All waste, except garden waste, comes from consuming things, and if we reduce the amount of unnecessary things we consume, we will produce less waste – eg, buy large packs/bottles not small ones to reduce packaging; buy loose fruit not trays or cartons; mend clothes and get shoes repaired; refill your bottle and drink water not fancy low-cal drinks.

Even recycling costs more in Earth resources, like CO2, than not using the stuff in the first place. –Sheila Peacock, Warblington Close, Tadley.

Sir.–Your recent coverage about the possible causes behind Basingstoke’s low recycling achievements was very interesting.

Our family household of five has a 140-litre bin which we rarely fill – but our recycling bin is often overflowing!

We would mostly put this down to not purchasing many plastic or over-packaged items in the first place. If anyone needs an incentive to recycle more, the UK will be running out of space for landfill within the next five years and we will be subjected to EU ‘fines’ (taxes) for failing to reduce our landfill footprint. Our council is certainly lacking when it comes to what they will collect, which leads to a lot of confusion and may be preventing some residents from recycling everything they could. Some authorities manage a much wider range – is it lack of will or lack of understanding at the decisionmaking level that has led to this?

Festival Place has an excellent recycling record and regularly wins awards in the field.

May I suggest if anyone has an item that the council doesn’t recycle, that they take it to a bin in Festival Place! Until our council sorts the recycling out, I would like to reassure your reporter Emily Roberts that she (and everyone else!) can bring her bottle tops to Lush, where we have been collecting them from local residents and businesses for over three years now.

We run a special scheme with some of the local cafés who have saved over 300kg of bottle tops from landfill in the last two years. Some are recycled into our packaging and the rest are taken to the local scrapstore at Chute House, for use by local playschemes.

It is not always easy to see why recycling is so important. Something that may help with this is the idea of One Planet Living. This reminds us that we live on one Earth, with only the resources present on it; current European lifestyles require an average of three Earths – this is not sustainable.

When we throw something ‘away’, where is ‘away’? Recycling allows us to reclaim and reuse the limited resources available to us.

If the welfare of the planet or future generations’ enjoyment of it is not an incentive, perhaps consider your pockets; prices will only rise as resources become more scarce. –Sorrel Griggs, Life-long resident of Basingstoke and Green Hero @ Lush Basingstoke.

Sir.–I have said it before – it isn’t rocket science, it is easy to take in what you can and cannot put in your green bin.

A list was put on the lid of my green bin some time ago and it is still there. I basically feel people cannot care enough, can’t be bothered.

It is important we do this. I think some people are just too lazy and it is easy for them just to chuck their rubbish in the grey bin and the problem will go away. –Mrs C Burns, Rowan Road, Tadley.

Sir.–I congratulate The Gazette on the continuation in its pages of the Green Town, Green Borough campaign, and I read with interest the comments made by our local politicians.

Basingstoke is fortunate in having a number of volunteer groups working hard to help communities become aware of environmental issues. Unfortunately, these groups do not always feel that their efforts are being fully understood or backed by local politicians.

For example, a recycling rate of 26 per cent cannot by any stretch of the imagination be considered good.

Councillor Clive Sanders, leader of the borough council, seems to believe that it will be a ‘long slow progress until recycling is engraved in our way of life’.

That may well be true in Basingstoke, particularly since the council has withdrawn from the Recycle for Hampshire Initiative and thus has no education for recycling in place in our local schools and communities.

Education and good publicity is the key to changing behaviour, not only with respect to recycling and waste reduction but also to energy saving and carbon emissions reduction.

I would like to know why the council decided to withdraw from this initiative and what they intend to put in its place? –Susan Juon, Copse View Close, Chineham.

Sir.–With regard to the article by Councillor Robert Donnell (January 16) and subsequent letter by Martin Heath (January 23) – there is a lot the borough council can do to aid recycling.

We all need to do our bit with recycling and not everyone is able to get to the recycling facility at Wade Road. It is our leaders’ duty, Cllr Donnell being one of them, to show leadership and not hide behind poor excuses. Tell us what we can and can’t recycle, collect and remove to a suitable storage area.

A simple leaflet with You Can Recycle, and You Can't Recycle should be enough.

It's not rocket science – it's about willingness. You can’t expect residents ‘to do’ if you haven't explained what it is you require of them. Poor managers lose the willingness of the workforce – the same applies to councillors.

Councillors and MPs are only there because we, the electorate, vote them in to represent us and promote the area.

Elections are coming – councillors need to stand up and show willing.

I do hope that Basingstoke councillors find a way to progress the recycling programme, and that they challenge (sorry, negotiate with) manufacturers to produce recyclable packaging, particularly for foodstuffs. –J P York, Laburnum Way, Winklebury, Basingstoke.