Oh, Lawks! (And Other Not Quite So Genteel Expletives)

We had a printed leaflet from the council pushed through the letterbox at the weekend.  Apparently, the local council is introducing compulsory recycling from the middle of November.  Not something I particularly have a problem with as I recycle as conscientiously as possible already.  OK, the odd toilet roll inner does end up in the black waste sack instead of the pink recycling sack but, hey, none of us are perfect!!

So, I'm reading on through the rather densely-typed information on the leaflet - thinking, well, I'm alright Jack, no £75 fine in the offing for me for not recycling correctly.  Then my eyes alight on a small paragraph near the bottom of the page which says the council will be introducing food waste collections from next year.  WHAAAAAT!!!!  Good job I was in the house alone as the air turned blue with swearing.  They're introducing slop buckets - rat-attracting, maggot-infesting slop buckets.  And this is the same council that still makes us put our household waste in black plastic bin bags for collection (and, yes, I have contacted the council several times to point out how environmentally unfriendly this is - why not wheelie bins for heavens sake?) and collects all recycling in one pink sack (except for glass) which probably means that having been assiduously sorted by us it will still end up in landfill in the third world.

Now, I am a keen supporter of recycling and really do try to do my bit, but I do object to a) being told anything is compulsory (I have a bit of a problem with being told what to do), and b) having to sort food waste into slop buckets.  How on earth can you compost meat and dairy waste anyway?  Luckily for us we don't have much food waste - all meat bits go out in the garden for Mr Fox and / or assorted passing felines, fruit and veg waste goes into the compost bin (well in the summer it does, at the moment the grass is too wet to trek across to the compost bin.  Think I'll have to get a lidded bucket to keep outside the back door for compost waste.) 

Anyhoo, I'm really not too happy about this and I feel another phone call to the council coming on.  I have to say I can't quite see how they'll enforce it - will they be ripping open the black bin bags to root around in them checking for evidence of misappropriated food waste??  Will they notice if I never put the slop bucket out for emptying??  Will I be fined £75 for refusing to use said slop bucket??  Anyone else out there with a compulsory-recycling-slop-bucket-providing council?  If so, what are your experiences of food waste collections?

PS Sorry about the rant but this has really got on my whatsits!!

Comments

[Teresa]

We've had food recycling for a while in our area. The council provided a small plastic container for the house and a large lidded bucket to empty it into outside. They also provide starch sacks for the large bin and empty it weekly. We've had no problems with rats or smells etc. The only glitch was when we looked after my daughter's dogs and one of them chewed the corner of the bucket. Now we just lift it out of the way when they are around - along with everything else!!

[Sandie]

If it's any help ... you can get a food digester for the garden ...looks similar to a compost bin

http://www.greencone.com/

[French Knots]

Our council has gone to the opposite extreme and we have 4 wheelie bins outside the house! It certainly saves trips to the recycling centre but takes up a lot of space and looks pretty ugly.
No food collections here but it seems an odd idea, most stuff goes in the children or the compost bin, what would the council do with cooked meat and such like?

[sue]

I live in Canada and we have been recycling our food waste for a couple of years at least maybe even longer. I do not have a problem at all with it. We have a small container with a lid that I keep under the kitchen sink and a wheelie bin that we empty it into outside. We have not had any problems with rats at all.
With that and recycling paper, plastic, glass etc. most weeks our actual garbage only fills a grocery store plastic bag.
It's just a matter of getting used to doing it.

[Ponytail]

We've had food waste bins for about a year (I think my council is next door to yours, from reading your earlier blog entries !) and it's been OK. I find the smaller bin very easy to use in the kitchen, and then there's a bigger bin which is the one that goes out. They both close very tightly (there's a locking mechanism in the lid handle) and we've had much fewer problems with foxes ripping our bin bags. It is pretty grotty when you think deeply about it, but I would say DON'T, and just try it out. My tip is to use the compost bags that fit inside (Sainsburys sell them) as they keep the bin cleaner and make it easier to empty.
Let me know if you want more info !

[Wendy]

After reading your post today I quite sympathise with your rant!
Here in North Wales we have just been given a small grey box to use in the kitchen. We will then have to integrate the contents in our big green garden waste wheelies, which are emptied fortnightly. This is not too bad for me as we have a big garden and 2 green bins so the small amounts of kitchen waste we have will all marry together without the bins becoming smelly and unpleasant. Other friends and neighbours who don't have much green waste will have to empty a few eggshells/teabags etc into a big empty bin, which will be a huge thing to try and keep clean. I was interested in the compost bags from Sainsbury, which Ponytail recommends.

[Catherine]

I think perhaps you don't realise just how terrible some people are at recycling...! Sure, the cynics among us might think it's just the council trying to make money,but this poor old planet's in a right mess, and I sometimes think if certain types need a heavier boot up the bum to do their bit, then fair enough.
I love our food bin - there are certain utterly unrecyclable things in our house, like tiny bits of leftover sandwich from lunchboxes, or cheesy pasta sauce from the kids' tea, or other things which really can't be saved - and I for one hate putting them in the landfill bin.
I agree it would be ludicrous for someone like you to be fined, but I'm sure at least a few bits of uneaten dinner would go in there each week? And I agree with a few other posts - ours lives under the kitchen sink and is perfectly hygienic - great when I'm clearing away and washing up! I'd be lost without it!