Rubbish tax is on its way!

[jeremyjh1 10]

If it's a tax at all, it's a completely voluntary one. If you don't want to pay it, just manage your waste better. Dead simple really.

 

Yes, or as many will no doubt do, through it in the bushes under cover of darkness.

 

With it being a 'voluntary' tax, the options are rather simple.

 

1. Manage your waste more efficiently.

2. Avoid paying anything by fly-tipping.

3. Don't manage your waste and pay a hefty amount in tax.

 

Oh, and let us not forget that part of the council TAX (not that voluntary) goes towards services such as.........

 

waste collection/removal.

 

Forgive me for being a sore puss, but I take serious offence at being obliged to pay for a service that is probably going to charge me for utilising that self same service.

 

Odd, eh. Pay to have a service to have your waste collected and get fined (oops! I mean pay an additional tax) if you actually USE that service.

 

Think of the scenario (it won't ever happen, but let's just imagine that it might) where everyone manages their waste so effectively that NOTHING actually gets put in to a wheelie bin (black, blue, green, pink or whatever colour).

 

No need for doorstep collections - would be get a rebate?

 

Don't answer - I know what it will be

[Berberis 10]

Thanks for the update. In that case, no! I suppose that highlights that it's better to educate people than try and control their behaviour. One question though; what do you do when people don't want to be educated? Do you then try and coerce in some way, or do you take the view that it's their choice and carry on as you were?

 

No its simple, reverse it by way of rewarding those who recycle instead of penalise those who don’t. Then only the really stupid will refuse to recycle and everyone is happy. The problem is so many people are suckered in by talk of 'not implementing until there are sufficient recycling availability'. Sounds just like the 'Money from speed cameras wont go to the government' we had a few years ago. Ohh where does it all go now I wonder!

[AtticusFinch 10]

And this is what other countries do. For example while I was in Menorca in Sept there where recycling bins on every major road at about 200 yard intervals. One for paper, one for plastic and one for glass. I’ve seen similar in a lot of other European countries for years.

 

Same in Turin where I've lived before. The local authorities in Britain don't do anywhere near enough when it comes to recycling.

[alchresearch 213]

How about this: the council commits to providing bring banks for paper, glass, tins and plastic within five minutes walk of where you live, no matter where in Sheffield you are.

 

That's what we have around here. Every large pub car park / supermarket or shopping area has a recycling centre (bottles, paper and clothing). Like I said, I pass several on my way home from work (all are signposted as well).

[Blade1983 10]

Oh, and the other thing - a lot of people are too dense or too selfish to change their behaviour unless there's a finacial incentive to do so.

 

ok get this one.

 

I went on holiday when the new 2 weekly system came into effect. One of my neighbours decided to fill my bin whilst I was away and put it on the curb. Only they'd got the wrong week, and it was green bin week. When I get back I rang the council who refused to do anything. So I had to store my own cr@p for a week until it was black bin day.

 

now if they're weighing my bin and charging me, what's to stop my neighbours doing the same again? resulting in me paying for someone elses rubbish?

 

same arguement with the green bins really. I make sure I follow the rules, but what's to stop someone walking down the road the night before / the morning of the bin collection, and putting a mars bar wrapper in my green bin?

[Blade1983 10]

also..........

 

we've been following the recycling thing to the letter of the law since it came in.... however, we still fill our black bin in 2 weeks...... the reason....... PLASTIC.

 

There is no plastic recycling collection, and I'd say that plastic makes up around 50% of "my/our" household waste.

 

Drinks bottles, milk bottles, food packaging, etc etc. and they take up a huge amount of space in the bin.

[DaFoot 10]

... Drinks bottles, milk bottles, food packaging, etc etc. and they take up a huge amount of space in the bin.

Have a look next time you go to supermarket, there may well be recycling bins there for plastic, tins and foil. Take it with you next time you go shopping.

[Tony 10]

Hmmm, I hate pointless waste with a vengeance but this seems like a cockamamie way to go about it to me. Much better to reduce waste at source.

 

How about fining the producer if packaging is more than say 5% by weight of the goods contained within?

[BorderReiver 10]

Did you hear not 2 days ago that the government was kicking the idea of a pay as you throw charge 'into the long grass'. Well its all change again as the Labour government has now decided to go ahead with this and allow local councils to put charges for how much none recycled waste you produce.

 

Why do these muppets in office think a tax is the solution to every problem?

 

Rubbish charging given go-ahead

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7067971.stm

 

This "government" have turned putting out misinformation into a fine art. Sort of like The Ministry of Truth in Orwell's 1984.

 

It was probably a blatant lie put out so that people will blame their individual councils

[alchresearch 213]

Drinks bottles, milk bottles, food packaging, etc etc. and they take up a huge amount of space in the bin.

 

1. They're plastic.

2. They're empty.

 

Just take off the lid and squash them flat!

[jeremyjh1 10]

A number of points.

 

1. Plastic - there is little real recycling going on; plastic cannot be properly recycled without creating more harm to the environment. What plastic is 'recycled' - reproduced as something else - is done so only once. Plastic bottles can become fleece lining for jackets or plastic park benches. THAT plastic cannot be recycled again.

 

No plastic used to hold or store any foodstuff can be re-used or recycled for use with any foodstuffs. Reason? The cleaning process - i.e. high temperatures - causes the polymer to become unstable and degrade - i.e. release some of the toxins. This is a process that is ongoing, in very small, but continuous quantities.

 

Health and Safety.

 

Also, virgin plastic costs considerably less than recycled plastic.

 

2. Collection services - we pay council tax for waste to be collected from our doorstep. Due to the inept, myopic, short-term view of our wonderful council, there is now a problem of depleting landfill options and increased costs (for the council) to use that service. So, they decide to charge us (again) for collecting our waste.

 

We pay to have the service and now they want us to pay if we use that service (too much)!!

 

I contacted the council and Veolia about this and received a reply (I still have the email) from someone pretty high up the authority chain that claimed (and this is a direct quote from that email):

 

"We use the waste to generate energy in the most efficient energy from waste plant in the UK. This is where the 60% of waste which is not recycled or landfilled goes. It heats many of the buildings in the City Centre (around 140) and also generates sufficient electricity to power around 23,000 homes. We have reason to believe that using the waste in this way is as good as or in some cases better than recycling."

 

So, if we use the service less, then less waste will be available for the council to recycle to heat many of the City Centre buildings, thus causing their heating costs to rise as they will have to buy more energy in.

 

And, according to this email, if so little collected waste actually goes to landfill (thus not incurring increased charges) why would there be a need for Sheffield council to impose any kind of rubbish tax (other than as a means to collect more money in the form of indirect taxation).

 

As so much of the heating of City Centre buildings is reliant on waste being recycled, would it not be more prudent for the council to consider ways of increasing the yield of recyclable waste rather than 'fine' those who over use the waste collection service?

 

That is the problem when those in charge of policy do not consider the long-term solution and simply focus on tax revenue generators.

[Blade1983 10]

our collections are made by rotherham council, who do use landfill.