[loz]

Recycling could be adding to global warming rather than reducing it, a key government adviser on waste management has said.

Recycling 'could be adding to global warming' - Telegraph

Peter Jones suggested that an "urgent" review of Labour's policy on recycling was needed to make sure the collection, transportation and processing of recyclable material was not causing a net increase in greenhouse gases.

Mr Jones, a former director of the waste firm Biffa and now an adviser to environment ministers and the London Mayor, Boris Johnson, also dismissed kerbside recycling collections in many areas as "stupid" because they mixed together different materials, rendering them useless for recycling.

He suggested that much of the country's waste should simply be burnt to generate electricity.

"It might be that the global warming impact of putting material through an incinerator five miles down the road is actually less than recycling it 3,000 miles away," he said.

"We've got to urgently get a grip on how this material is flowing through the system; whether we're actually adding to or reducing the overall impact in terms of global warming potential in this process."

Mr Jones's outspoken comments come amid increasing controversy over household recycling.

Last month, The Daily Telegraph disclosed that councils in England and Wales were dumping more than 200,000 tons of recyclable waste every year – up to 10 per cent of all the glass, paper, plastic and other materials separated out by householders. Thousands of tons of recyclables are shipped to China because of insufficient capacity and demand in Britain.

In some parts of the country, residents have to sort their waste into as many as seven containers, including food waste bins, which has helped councils to justify the scrapping of weekly bin collections.

[Philly112]

That might be true, but does the true cost cover the fact that if material is not recycled then there will be a cost of producing the material from scratch.
My company recycles around 40-50,000 tonnes of glass every year (across Europe, 15,000 tonnes in UK).
If we had to make the glass from raw materials, that would be quite a significant increase in costs, not just CO2 emissions. And we'd probably go bust!
There are quite a few industries (like ours) who rely on waste products.
Ironically, when we recycle the glass, we generate maybe 15% of unuseable glass dust, which we are then charged to dump in the ground - if we weren't here it would all be dumped. So that is a bit annoying!

This part of the article is interesting:

Last month, The Daily Telegraph disclosed that councils in England and Wales were dumping more than 200,000 tons of recyclable waste every year – up to 10 per cent of all the glass, paper, plastic and other materials separated out by householders.

Or put another way, 90% of what we seperate for recycling is presumably actually recycled.

Although there is a real problem with some materials of course, simply because of the drop in demand for steel, paper etc.
It would appear that making electricity from certain materials would be a good idea - although, that would require further segregation of materials of course.

Phil

[moonrakerz]

Looking at the thousands of cars that visit my local "recycling" centre every week I have to agree with the "Telegraph".

We are told to recycle everything by the politicians then the local authorities don't collect the vast majority of it, as we are not allowed to put it in the bin WE have to take it to them in our cars. I did read about one man who was deemed to be "dangerous" at his recycling centre because he took his stuff in a wheelbarrow and not his car !

Alice in Wonderland has nothing on this lot !!!

[andykn]

Originally Posted by moonrakerz

Looking at the thousands of cars that visit my local "recycling" centre every week I have to agree with the "Telegraph".

We are told to recycle everything by the politicians then the local authorities don't collect the vast majority of it, as we are not allowed to put it in the bin WE have to take it to them in our cars. I did read about one man who was deemed to be "dangerous" at his recycling centre because he took his stuff in a wheelbarrow and not his car !

Alice in Wonderland has nothing on this lot !!!

If you put up with your local council not collecting your houshold rubbish then it's you living in Wonderland.

[moonrakerz]

Originally Posted by andykn

If you put up with your local council not collecting your houshold rubbish then it's you living in Wonderland.

Read what I said ! I said they don't collect most of what they tell you to recycle.

[andykn]

Originally Posted by moonrakerz

Read what I said ! I said they don't collect most of what they tell you to recycle.

So your council tell you to recycle it yourself? What council and what stuff?

[moonrakerz]

Originally Posted by andykn

So your council tell you to recycle it yourself? What council and what stuff?

Exactly ! The council tell me to recycle it myself - then expect me (and everyone else) to take it to the recycling centre.

Cardboard, Plastic, Electrical equipment, clothing, anything that won't go into the wheelie bin, etc,etc.

If you have a couple of hours to spare, would you like to Google "West Wilts dustmen" ?
They won't empty your bin if they think it is too heavy, too far from the pavement or empty the garden waste bin if it has flowers in it from inside the house.

Who is in Wonderland !

[loz]

My elderly mother is now scared stiff of being fined for not recycling according to her local council's rules.

She has been sent a guide of what must be recycled and into which recycle bin it must be placed.

Consequently, she is constantly phoning me up asking where she should put this and that as she can't find it in the book, or it isn't clear what category it is.

I kid you not, but she called the other day and asked if she now had to put used toilet paper in the paper recycle bin instead of flushing it down the toilet.

[andykn]

Originally Posted by loz

My elderly mother is now scared stiff of being fined for not recycling according to her local council's rules.

She has been sent a guide of what must be recycled and into which recycle bin it must be placed.

Consequently, she is constantly phoning me up asking where she should put this and that as she can't find it in the book, or it isn't clear what category it is.

I kid you not, but she called the other day and asked if she now had to put used toilet paper in the paper recycle bin instead of flushing it down the toilet.

Perehaps her and her friends should use their vote more effectively, see my emphasis above.

[moonrakerz]

Originally Posted by andykn

Perehaps her and her friends should use their vote more effectively, see my emphasis above.

Please expand !

[andykn]

Originally Posted by moonrakerz

Please expand !

It's your council making these decisions. If you don't like them, vote them out.

My council collects recycling weekly and makes it very clear what they will recycle and what they don't. They also collect bulky items.

[moonrakerz]

Originally Posted by andykn

It's your council making these decisions. If you don't like them, vote them out.

My council collects recycling weekly and makes it very clear what they will recycle and what they don't. They also collect bulky items.

I have one vote - how many do you have ?

You seem to have difficulty in understanding what people say to you:

MY council collects recycling fortnightly - no problem, except it will not collect the items/material I have mentioned previously.
They also make it clear what they will recycle - then they do not not collect it - the householder has to take it to them.

[johntheexpat]

Some of you may find this a little pedantic, but if recycling does add to Global Warming, so what? They are actually two completely different issues. Recycling is about reducing the rate of consumption of finite resources and also about reducing the western worlds use of landfill.
The two issues are certainly related because they both come under the 'Green' umbrella. They may well be joined in the minds of a scientifically illiterate and sensationalist media, but recycling as a way of noticeably reducing the Greenhouse effect? A bit of a non starter when you scratch beneath the surface.
Recycling's (perceived) close association with Climate Change can, however, be used as a tool to try and undermine efforts for reducing MMGW, as shown by the original article. Recycling could be adding to global warming. Well, yes. But it is still a 'good thing'.

[andykn]

Originally Posted by moonrakerz

I have one vote - how many do you have ?

You seem to have difficulty in understanding what people say to you:

MY council collects recycling fortnightly - no problem, except it will not collect the items/material I have mentioned previously.
They also make it clear what they will recycle - then they do not not collect it - the householder has to take it to them.

So if you put cardboard or an old radio in your wheelie bin the council won't take it away?

Most councils don't recycle everything that is recyclable