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with 'SWINDON NEWS'
Swindon's green wheelie revolution
8:52am Monday 5th May 2008
Comments (41)IT resulted in some of Swindon's streets being turned into rubbish dumps and caused a political row in the council chamber.
But exactly six months on from the introduction of wheelie bins across the town, Swindon is slowly but surely turning green.
The town's recycling rate is up about 15 per cent and the majority of residents are happy with the council's rubbish collection service. In fact Steve Harcourt, director of environment and streetscene at Swindon Council, says Swindon is a tidier town thanks to the fortnightly rubbish collections.
Yet in the weeks following the borough-wide wheelie bin roll out on November 5 the situation could not have been different.
Residents became confused about the new collection dates, resulting in mounds of rubbish piling up across town, while residents and councillors in Broadgreen called for the council to suspend the scheme as they said the bins were inappropriate for their terraced streets.
But the early teething problems have now been overcome according to Mr Harcourt.
In March, 43.5 per cent of waste was recycled - it was 27.3 per cent prior to November.
He said: "By the end of March we had diverted 7,178 tonnes of waste from landfill.
"Complaint levels are about 20 or 30 a day - and when you consider we are doing 860,000 collections a month that is a low percentage."
The success of the scheme has been based on a policy of educating residents, although the threat of fines has helped focus people's minds on what they should and should not throw away.
"In the past six months we have issued about 200 notices setting out how refuse should be put out for collection," said Mr Harcourt.
"Failure to comply with that results in a fine - and that warning has been sufficient with most people. We have recently issued two fixed penalty notices for fly-tipping - these are people who have ignored the warnings and been putting black bags out outside about 100 yards down the road from their homes. I think Swindon is now a tidier town.
"Of course this is one of the few services a council runs that everyone engages with. To change that service for 80,000 plus households is a significant change.
"We know there are people in Swindon who, for whatever reason, are not taking part.
"We will always have some problems and we recognise that. But I think that we're confident that the work and engagement we have seen from Swindon people has been fantastic."
Your Say YourSwindon Advertiser
HoneyPie, The Shire says...
11:30am Mon 5 May 08
SwindonBorn, Swindon says...
11:33am Mon 5 May 08
dalekdave, Swindon says...
11:34am Mon 5 May 08
If Swindon is rubbish strewn, its because people are lazy and can't be bothered. My only sympathies are for those who suffer because of others laziness.
Well done Swindon Council (and its rarely I say that)
m0bcg, south marston says...
11:54am Mon 5 May 08
are you sure the council live in the REAL WORLD , because its much different out in the real world you know .
i did not see any reduction in my council tax this year but my rubbish collection is now halved , something doesnt add up somewhere now does it SBC .
just wait till the summer months, all that heat and rubbish and insects and rodents just do not mix well .
there should be a seasonal rubbish collection programme whereby in the summer months from may to september there is a weekly collection of rubbish and then in the colder months it could go down to a 2 weekly collection .
after all the only reason for the bi weekly collection is to make it look like our council is recycling more so that they can make it look like they have reached the targets set by the european and english government in order to obtain grants of MONEY that they can only obtain through "showing" a reduction in waste output .
in other words it is sneaky way of making it look like they have reduced the amount of waste .
not ALL residents have wheely bins, they are only provided to those the council think are easily accessable houses for the bin men to collect bins from , all other houses still have bin bags .
not ALL council tax payers get their rubbish collected either, just go along the A420 near south marston and you will find people who have no rubbish collection , but they are all paying extortionate council tax bills and receive no reduction because of this .
not to mention the councils sneaky way of getting rid of black bin bags and supplying special BLUE bin bags that you cannot buy anywhere , so you can only have 52 bags per year in which to put your rubbish into for collection , hardly enough for one person to put their rubbish in let alone a family of 5 .
its no wonder what the outcome was at the local elections last week , the english people are sick and fed of being ripped off at every turn .
my advice to swindon council is to reduce the money spent on admin and expensive advertising campaigns and to start giving the residents of swindon actual service for the huge amount of money we pay each week .
the poll tax introduced in the 1980s by margaret thatcher was only the equivalent of 25% of what we are paying now , it is worth thinking about as to which party has ripped us off the most .
personally i have come to the conclusion that LABOUR are not there for the working classes but for themselves .
Robert Feal-Martinez, Swindon says...
12:18pm Mon 5 May 08
Tobz, says...
12:50pm Mon 5 May 08
My street has far more litter on it now than before - and we've already noticed an increase in stuff being dumped in the back alleys and cut-throughs. Are rats flies and maggots really 'green'?
The most depressing thing about this whole stupid scheme is the political amneovering. We have conservative councillors trying to claim that AWC is their 'green success' - when it was a policy enforced by central Labour government - and then you have local Labour candidates canvassing saying that they'd re-introduce weekly collections!
A plague of vermin on all their houses: which is exactly what we're all going to get when the temperature warms up...
Tobz, says...
1:02pm Mon 5 May 08
"Complaint levels are about 20 or 30 a day - and when you consider we are doing 860,000 collections a month that is a low percentage."
20 'or' 30 a day - thats 900 complaints a month... and how many people have given up compaining??
This policy has been one of the biggest cons in recent times. The environmental 'benefit' is negligable - or even counter productive because things like extra journeys to the tip, chemicals to bleach stinking bins or poison rats are never fatored in to the calculation. Meanwhile, waste companies are making money out of residents efforts, politicians make hay by claiming to be green, and people who do nothing else suddely think that they're actually doing something to 'save the planet'! - but the rubbish is STILL being produced! (PS - the vast majority of landfill comes from industry, NOT household waste)
Robert Feal-Martinez, Swindon says...
2:14pm Mon 5 May 08
merv, swindon says...
6:32pm Mon 5 May 08
Robert Feal-Martinez, Swindon says...
7:16pm Mon 5 May 08
yeti, swindon says...
8:43pm Mon 5 May 08
the current arrangements are fine for me and my family
Claire, Swindon says...
10:10pm Mon 5 May 08
watsy999, Swindon says...
10:51pm Mon 5 May 08
aahbunny, Town Centre says...
11:15pm Mon 5 May 08
Despite putting the right things in my orange boxes, and putting them in the right place at the right time, SBC have only collected my recycling 8 times since Jan 1st - where do I get a council tax refund??
Tobz, says...
12:44am Tue 6 May 08
ling across the streets.
For the LAST TIME - surely the success of the scheme isn't about whether it works for YOU in your cosy little estate? - : its whether the policy actually benefits ther majority across the burough or the environment - OR whether it actually creates a whole new set of bigger problems?
Flytipping?
Extra journeys to collect rubbish?
New collection vehicles?
Chemicals to bleach/clean bins?
Hot water and detergeant to rinse out cans/bottles etc?
Extra plastic bags to double wrap rotting foodstuffs?
<<slaps forehead>>
SpeakUp, Swindon says...
1:09am Tue 6 May 08
Swindon streets also look unsightly now with recycling bins scattered in fron gardens, porches and more. The council insist they assessed properties to make sure they could use a wheelie bin. Yea, fine, but they did not take account of whether they could be hidden away discreetly or would have to be on full view in our front gardens.
Makes the whole town look like a gypsy camp. Great.
HER_IN_DOORS, Swindon says...
7:22am Tue 6 May 08
Another Ginger, a happy little soldier says...
7:22am Tue 6 May 08
I do feel that the appearance of many of the terraced streets has been blighted by these bins, and would be extremely unhappy if I could not get mine out of sight. A case of "One size does NOT fit all".
The supposed rat issue is an imaginery one dreamt up by opponents of this scheme. I can't see how a rat would find it easier to get into a solid bin than a plastic bag. Hopefully the urban fox population will decrease too for the same reason. No more ripped bags and rubbish strewn down the street on bin day.
I haven't noticed any smells worse than we used to get with the bags - even after a chicken carcass has gone in a couple of days after emptying. The fresher rubbish on top seems to suppress the horrors below quite nicely.
Finally, stop blaming the council, or even the government for that matter. This has been forced on us by Europe, as RFM has stated many times before. The way that it is done is managed locally, but the overall result must be a huge reduction in landfill.
Since the alternative seems to be "Pay-as-you-throw", I'll stick with what we've got thanks.
Tony Hillier, Old Walcot says...
7:27am Tue 6 May 08
Tues 6 May
6-7 pm
Live radio discussion :
Why didn't people vote ?
Why did some bother ?
What should politicans do to change that ?
Swindon 105.5
Telephone :
01793 611555
(during show or record your views prior by telephoning any reasonable time)
or e mail views :
info@swindon1055.com
tune in to 105.5 fm
http://www.community
radioswindon.com/
Regards
Tony Hillier
Discussion Presenter
PS Studio is based in Swindon Town Football Ground
doug@homefarm, SN1 says...
9:30am Tue 6 May 08
Robert Feal-Martinez wrote:Really RFM, no confidence in your own ability? You certainly don't come across like that in these collumns
merv, I didn't vote at all.
angry monkey, Swindon says...
9:43am Tue 6 May 08
dalekdave wrote:100% agree
Stop whinging people; my family of four, inclusing 2 teenage sons has no problem sticking to the regime of a fortnightly collection. If Swindon is rubbish strewn, its because people are lazy and can't be bothered. My only sympathies are for those who suffer because of others laziness. Well done Swindon Council (and its rarely I say that)
Open Eyed, Swindon says...
9:47am Tue 6 May 08
If you produced only one bag a week I can understand that the bag comes right out your kitchen bin and onto the pavement on collection morning ... but that was in the day when the council did not collect recycling so everything was included in that one bag. I think not
Everyone must have had bags lying somewhere, and those were more prone to attack by vermin than a wheelie bin.
If you had an outside bin to store these extra bags in until collection then the wheelie bin has replaced it. And anyone had to clean out their old bins with a bit of soap and water every now and then.
So the wheelie bin is bigger ! it holds twice as much so one collection every two weeks should not be a problem. And the council now collects your tins, glass and paper every week (and you don't even have to separate them).
Sure these are all improvements ???
I have sympathy for people who are not having their refuse collected.
People who have no place for a wheelie bin get given bags to use so the council has catered for everyone.
As far as rats go, maybe everyone should go around and speak to those people who dump their mown grass, hedge and tree cuttings and waste soil over their garden fences into public fields creating a loving and warm living environment for all sorts of rodent.
Robert Feal-Martinez, Swindon says...
10:18am Tue 6 May 08
Damien Davis, Churchward says...
11:44am Tue 6 May 08
People who have no place for a wheelie bin get given bags to use so the council has catered for everyone
Not in my road they don't! We have 8 wheelie bins between 28 flats/apartments! We don't have any orange boxes for weekly recycling either. I have a garage with a built-in bin store (like many other modern apartments in my road). I have the facility to house a wheelie bin and an orange box, but the council will not provide me with one because "There is currently no provisioning for flats". What a load of cobblers. Logisitcally, I could be treated the same as a house.
Yet repeated phone calls, emails and letters are getting ignored. I've written directly to the council (run by the conservatives) and also to my local councillors (Western Ward, Labour) and NO-ONE seems to be able to help. All piling the blame on the other political parties.
I'm not interested in whose fault it is, I just want someone to take ownership of the problem!
Damien Davis, Churchward says...
11:45am Tue 6 May 08
Not in my road they don't! We have 8 wheelie bins between 28 flats/apartments! We don't have any orange boxes for weekly recycling either. I have a garage with a built-in bin store (like many other modern apartments in my road). I have the facility to house a wheelie bin and an orange box, but the council will not provide me with one because "There is currently no provisioning for flats". What a load of cobblers. Logisitcally, I could be treated the same as a house.
Yet repeated phone calls, emails and letters are getting ignored. I've written directly to the council (run by the conservatives) and also to my local councillors (Western Ward, Labour) and NO-ONE seems to be able to help. All piling the blame on the other political parties.
I'm not interested in whose fault it is, I just want someone to take ownership of the problem!
Damien Davis, Churchward says...
11:47am Tue 6 May 08
People who have no place for a wheelie bin get given bags to use so the council has catered for everyone
Not in my road they don't! We have 8 wheelie bins between 28 flats/apartments! We don't have any orange boxes for weekly recycling either. I have a garage with a built-in bin store (like many other modern apartments in my road). I have the facility to house a wheelie bin and an orange box, but the council will not provide me with one because "There is currently no provisioning for flats". What a load of cobblers. Logisitcally, I could be treated the same as a house.
Yet repeated phone calls, emails and letters are getting ignored. I've written directly to the council (run by the conservatives) and also to my local councillors (Western Ward, Labour) and NO-ONE seems to be able to help. All piling the blame on the other political parties.
I'm not interested in whose fault it is, I just want someone to take ownership of the problem!
Damien Davis, Churchward says...
11:48am Tue 6 May 08
Dick-Turpin, Swindon says...
12:18pm Tue 6 May 08
john c, swindon says...
12:47pm Tue 6 May 08
This is better for us as I used to have to store the black bags in the shed and that did get smelly in the summer.
Having said this I am lucky that I have a driveway to store them all.
sashstaff, Swindon says...
1:39pm Tue 6 May 08
Only issue I have with the scheme is that everyone should participate, we have a tiny front garden on a main road and yet are forced to squeeze past the wheelie bin and stack of orange boxes, plus I am woken up at 6:30am once a fortnight when they come to collect the glass!
99% of people could manage if they really wanted to - why can't they have them in Goddard Avenue? Can middle class people not manage to tell the difference between cardboard and glass? They have larger front garden and the road is much quieter than ours.
It could be a success in every area, just some people don't seem to want it to be, because it takes a little more effort than dragging a bin bag down the path once a week.
Also, why can the council not help us dispose of organic waste (ie. kitchen leftovers etc.) we do not have space for a compost bin so it all has to be wasted even though we'd be happy to recycle. This goes for a number of different recyclable plastics too.
Plus, why why why do the bin men insist on scattering the roads with those irritating black lids, we've had to replace ours three times.
As for rats/flies etc., they were always in Swindon, just now we have something to blame the problem on rather than just our own dirty habits.
doug@homefarm, SN1 says...
1:42pm Tue 6 May 08
Robert Feal-Martinez wrote:Fair enough, I did think that might be the case and I was sure that you'ld confirm
Doug, could have something to do with my ward not being up for election Doug!!!!!!!!
doug@homefarm, SN1 says...
1:48pm Tue 6 May 08
angry monkey, Swindon says...
2:11pm Tue 6 May 08
Donkey, Swindon says...
2:21pm Tue 6 May 08
For those who refuse to comply, I feel rather sorry for them, there is no real excuse for ignoring simple instructions. We used to be a reasonably clean nation post plague, but some of our over-crowding in properties and language barrier cousins don't seem to share our concerns, perhaps?
I am not a supporter of this Council, but under pressure from the Government, I would say that they are getting there slowly over this re-cycling mess.
There isn't much that I can say about value for money for a considerable level of Council Tax, but the green bag garden waste collections do save trips to the tip at busy times of the year, like now!
This Summer will prove or disprove whether poor environmental health will result from a two week cycle of household, non-recyclable waste ... let's give it until September, then moan if it is the case.
Incidentally, 6.30 am does seem to be the starting time for the collections ... couldn't make more racket if they tried ... and up to four vehicles now, when it used to be one or two ... still, we can't have it all ways can we?
emmylou83, Stratton says...
2:27pm Tue 6 May 08
angry monkey wrote:oh don't encourage them please
I've heard P S Altery and Grimaldi make some far out tunes using their wheelie bins.
angry monkey, Swindon says...
2:40pm Tue 6 May 08
The summer makes no difference to the smell of a wheelie bin if you keep the lid closed
crusader, swindon says...
4:54pm Tue 6 May 08
As for recycling ok we are forced to do it but we do not get a reduction in our council tax for sorting out (cleaning out) jars cans bottles etc. Money offf for those who recycle the most!!!!!!!!
PJC, Old Town says...
5:10pm Tue 6 May 08
paul_swindon, says...
10:58pm Tue 6 May 08
Fact - Recycling weekly and wheelie bins fortnightly are working if you recycle properly.
Fact - It cost the Council a lot to implement the scheme or face huge fines in 2010 by government.
So if you don't like it blame them.
Donkey, Swindon says...
9:21am Wed 7 May 08
How is this so ... I know you represent a Conservative viewpoint on these message boards, so do try to explain exactly how we have this low Council Tax level, one of the lowest in the country, when the Tories used the fact that the previous Labour administration upped the amount by over 42% in three years? They still collect this amount, as you are probably well aware ... EVERY year + their own rises!
You cannot answer that can you?
No, I am sorry but all this cr@p directed at Labour, both nationally and locally, is just that, cr@p!
The rise in Council Tax was, clearly, necessary, and as you stated ... we STILL have one of the lowest CT rates in the country ... even with the Tory propoganda machine's LIES over five local election campaigns!!!
My, how the electorate were conned ... I expect next year's leaflets will have the same old claptrap written down on them, once again telling what are actually untruths, and that is putting it mildly!
Steve Harcourt of Swindon Borough Council
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watsy999, Swindon says...
11:25am Mon 5 May 08