If the government and councils want us to recycle more should it not be a legal requirement for all councils toprovide faciilties to recycle all materials that can be reused. My council has no facility to recycle cardboard for example. i would be willing to take it to a recycling point but do not have this option. If they are then go to charge me extra for disposing of waste that I would have recycled I will be doubly annoyed.

G Austen, Manchester, England

All of this is a consequence of the landfill tax, an utterly pointless exercise driven by green alarmists.

Well-run and properly regulated, landfill is the best option for waste disposal and methane emissions can be harvested and used to generate electricity. Today’s landfill is tomorrow’s biodiverse nature reserve - many RSPB sites are former landfill.

The figure of eight or nine years until we run out of landfill space is nonsense. That’s the amount of space we have identified; there is plenty more if we choose to use landfill.

Recycling is another pointless exercise that we have the greens to thank for. There is no shortage of anything we recycle, making recycling economically unviable. The recycling industry survives only because of taxpayer subsidy, the exploitation of developing countries and the unpaid time you and I are forced to spend sorting and cleaning our rubbish.

nottinghillnonsense, London,

I think supermarkets should put pressure on companies to reduce packing - a cardboard box for 3 pairs of girls knickers from Tesco!! A group of us organised a "group unwrap" Before loading your car, remove all the unwanted packagaing, and leave it in the trolley for the supermarket to dispose of. Don't fill up your wheelies with their rubbish!!

Paulene , Thingwall, Wirral

while not wishing to absolve manufacturers of their responsibilities regarding excessive packaging, I do wonder if the E.U., with their myriad regulations on health and safety, should also share some blame. If manufacturers are obliged to include certain information on their products, and to use wrapping materials that conform to a prescribed standard, then this could be another factor which generates unwanted waste.
Jan Denning

Jan Denning, Paris, France

I don't have a problem with fortnightly collections if the council can show me how they spend the money they are saving from not having to pay the bin men every week. I very much doubt that the money will be channelled into recycling.

How can the council expect people to jump on the recycling band wagon when they make it very difficult. I had to get in touch with my local council 3 times before they delivered my blue box. And even now I have to throw things in general waste because my blue box isn't big enough to contain all of our recyclable waste.

The government want everyone to start recylcing! Well they should make it easier. In Australia for example each household is given three wheelie bins. One for general waste, one for recyclable waste and one for garden waste. It works perfectly. Maybe our councils should start thinking of ways of encouraging us to recycle more rather than limiting our waste collections!

Amy, London, UK

I live in an area with green and black wheelie bins with alternate collections and most people seem to cope OK and there are only a very few overflowing bins. However I have lived in my house for 25 years and in the first 24 saw 1 rat. In the year we have had fortnightly collections I have seen 9. including having two come into the house. This is dispite having three cats and two dogs next door.

Whilst there are only a few overflowing bins this is enough to cause a major problem for everyone. And spare a thought for those of us in terraced houses with yards. Two big wheelie bins = no garden at all!!!

Lose all round in my view!

Sue M, Northants,

We have been on a two week cycle for over two years now and have encountered no problems.
With regards to excessive packaging, return it to the retailer for disposal, that will focus their attention.
Junk mail, put it back in the letter box, "Return to Sender".
Don't just sit at home and moan about it, be proactive and give them their own rubbish back

Snowy, Thetford, England

Its not that hard to reduce rubbish. Take one small ring notebook. List 3/4 days meals in the front then the associated shopping list in the back. This cuts down on unwanted food but needs only a quick shop twice a week plus one big monthly shop for non-perishables.. This probably works best if you eat real food as opposed to supermarket mush. As for nappies I have absolutely no sympathy - I used them for holidays and weekends away only, With Terries, flush the contents down the loo and put nappies in sterilising solution then hot wash every two days. Not exactly difficult is it?

Joy, Wiltshire,

Why can we not incinerate all our rubbish,or is it just another excuse by this ' government ' to fine us and employ more jobsworth bin police with a bonanza for private waste contractors.

Justin Case, Preston,Uk.,

This started a few years ago in Exeter. We had two young children both in nappies and a small backyard to store the rubbish. After two weeks it stank maggots slime id made be retch everytime i went near them. We had to carry them throught the house (very hygenic) when the council deigned to collect them. Fed up i put them in the car and drove around to the Civic centre and dumped them outside. Suffice to say the council collected it within the hour. I suggust you all do that!

Rob, Lima, Peru

Why on earth is it being proposed to lower the standard of service in such an important part of our daily life. No matter what the so called experts say it will clearly be a health hazard. We should surely be looking to improve rubbish collection including the recycling service. In Croydon we have a small box for recycling items collected every fortnight. No plastic or cardborad is collected. Our Council Taxes are increased annually much more than inflation but services are reduced.

Tony, Croydon,

If your council threatens to have fortnightly rubbish collections, simply take all your uncollected rubbish and dump it at their offices or outside the homes of the councillors. That should soon change their minds!

C Powell, London,

We recently moved into the a City where we have our rubbish picked up every other week instead of weekly. Although we recycle as much as possible in the recycle bin provided. The bin provided for our houshod waste for a family of four is small and therefore I am having to go to the tip every week to empty it. We moved into the City so we wouldn't need to use our cars so much. Yet I find myself having to drive to a tip four miles away to empty our rubbish. There are queues of people having to do the same who claimed they didn't need to do this before either. Hardly green! What are we paying all our council money for and what happen's when the weather improves?

Young, Worcester, Worcestershire

After a lifetime of recycling I now feel that I should throw the lot into the landfill bag. My city is being ruined by wheelie bins, fly-tipping and rubbish on the streets. My council does not seem to care as long as the recycling figures are up. If they don't care about the mess in our city why should I care about their recycling? And as for all those who love fortnightly collections have a look at our city where thousands have to store their wast in their back gardens thencarry it through their house after 2 weeks. Even Ben Bradshaw has now stated that it is not appropriate in inner- city areas but we are stuck with it.

Eric, Oxford,

We are told that we live in a democracy. The vast majority clearly want weekly rubbish collection and councils ought not to implement these cost-cutting measures under the pretence of green policies in the face of massive opposition from their constituents.

Like all other goods and services for which demand outstrips supply, the rich will pay private contractors to deal with the problem and the poor will be left high and dry. I tip shares in private refuse contractors to rise....

Alice Adams, London, UK

I pay my concil tax and get very little for it as I have no children, live in my own home and use no social services. Waste collection is one of the few services I do receive and I am amazed that anyone should consider stopping weekly collections. The idea that this does not constitute a health hazard is a sick joke and must lead to an increase in dumping rubbish with all the attendant health risks. This has nothing to do with recycling. In my block we have halved the amount of rubbish sent to landfill by supporting recycling schemes but my weekly collection is essential.
Which planet do these people live on who talk about double wrapping, putting paper at the bottom of the bins etc.? People just won't do it and the rats, flies, maggots etc will multiply. Do you want your family to run the increased risks this will present?
The only thing we can do is bombard our local councillors and MPs with letters,emails and calls. Don't just sit there, start writing and calling!

Susan Kaye, London,

Take your recyclable rubbish back to the supermarket if you shop by car. This requires no special journey - and places the onus back on the retailers and manufacturers of packaged goods to deal with the pollution they cause by their wasteful use of packaging. Brent Cross Tesco now has a recycling centre - if all North Londoners used it when doing the weekly shop the pressure would be off households and local authorities to clear up the mess created by the private sector.

Douglas Pointing, North London, UK

I live in an area where fortnightly bin collection has been used for some considerable time and believe me - it works. We have two large wheelie bins, one green and one brown plus a container for cans and bottles and a blue bag for newspapers. There is no way that rats or other vermin can get into the bins as they have lids. We also have access to communal recycling for a diverse range of other items. When the changes first appeared, it took a few days to get used to it. It makes you change the way you shop. rejecting over packaged goods. If you keep your bins clean and excess household rubbish well wrapped - then what's the problem? All it takes is a few minues each day to deal with. We are now in our fourth year with this scheme and I have yet to see any rotting, maggot infested health hazards on street corners. It really works if you just take a little responsibility for how you consume and dispose of your stuff. If you don't like excess packaging - make complaints.

Melody, York, UK

Fortnightly collections - Rubbish!

Kenneth Armitage, Suffolk, England

In Belgium we are allowed a single 100 litre bag each week of non-recyclable rubbish attaching a locally issued sticker ( 52 allocated per household per year). PET (plastic bottles) tetra pack containers and cans are put in a separate transparent bag collected fortnightly for recycling. Paper and cardboard are collected monthly. Glass can be taken to glass collection containers within each residential area. Alternatively all the recyclable stuff can be taken to local container parks, the number and size of which were increased when the new collection rules started. It really runs very well and i dont understand why UK does not start. Instead some councils seem to be taking the easy route of reducing collections and risking health and hygiene. I cannot imagine missing a collection and having to store for up to 1 month in the heat!. I am about to come back to UK and this will influence my decision where to live.

jeremy, wavre, belgium

The Thatcher revolution brought Council Tax and privatisation of refuse collection. We were told there would be improvements in efficiency ,and savings. We got neither.

We are now being ripped-off by thieving multi-anational contractors and hand-in-glove politicians; and that is why we have talk of fines, bin police and extra charges.

Thirty years ago every voluntary organisation made money recycling newspaper; so successfully that paper merchants claimed they couldn't handle the volume. That has now all gone. The lessons are quite clear. If we, the taxpayers, are to be required/induced to recycle more, we must be paid to do so, and paid directly. No doubt to find the 'merchants' overwhelmed again!

Refuse collection and disposal, and recycling, must be returned to local control, and every county should have a purpose built recycling centre/incinerator;crematoriums are accepted, why not incinerators. It works here in Japan, and we are not ripped-off.

Tom Benford, Kyoto, Japan

Who is this 'Lockhart' person ? At one moment'Sandy' then later 'Mr'; but I have seen him referred to as Lord Lockhart, and before that, a previous incarnation perhaps, as'Sir'.

Whatever his nom do poseur, I know what he is, and what he has been; Lockhart(please get his handle right once and for all)has been a leading light in English local government for at least thirty years, and has occupied many senior and influential elected positions and is now the Chairman of the Local Government Association, which commissioned the report which in turn has lead to his recent outrageous remarks about "we...carelessly...casting our rubbish into landfill".

The 'we' to which he refers is people like himself, year after year elected to positions of power and authority in English local , yet having neither the tactical ability to see beyond the end of his nose nor the strategic ability to see beyond the end of the next Committee meeting. It is all their fault, not ours.

Tom Benford, Kyoto, Japan

I have been unable to find any source that can tell me how much of one's carbon footprint one can reduce if one disposes of their dog. This came to me when I visited my local supermarket and noticed that the pet food section alone was as big as a local Coop Swiftshop. In addition to the carbon created by canned dog food production, dog pharmaceuticals and dog clothing and accessories, I would also like to know how much carbon is produced by ferrying a dog by car to a suitable place for dog walking. I'd also like to know how much carbon is produced by dog mess cleaning processes. I realise that many people will be unwilling to consider the impact that unecessesary pet animals have on the environment but until the issue is factored in to our calculations, it is difficult to see why those of us who do not keep animals as pets should acquiesce to gestures such as recycling or refraining from flying.

Tam Earl-Aine, Cheltenham, UK

Tony Jones, you forget to mention we also have no control over all the junk mail we receive.

Chris, sutton coldfield,

Most domestic food and cleaning packaging made of metal, plastic and cardboard carries a recycling logo – a circular arrow. Tetrapaks, detergent bottles, cardboard/plastic/paper food packaging, and much else besides is all recyclable. In France householders are required to separate their rubbish into three separate sections for collection, – 1. Paper (newspapers, magazines, etc.) 2. recyclable packaging carrying the circular logo. .3. unrecyclable waste. There are two separate collections: one for all the recyclables and one for the unrecyclable waste. Glass is deposited by householders in roadside bins.

We are told we are running out of landfill sites unless recycling rates rise. The machinery is available for recycling a large proportion of our domestic rubbish than is presently collected, but my Council (Barnet) does not collect any of the plastic and cardboard packaging. If the French can do it, why can’t we?

Mrs Jacqueline Block, London, England

Two points.

First, why do councils not make it clear what altered arrangements apply to bank holidays, etc? Our collection date was permanently changed around Easter. We had a collection about 6am on Good Friday, then the following Saturday, then the new change from Thursday to Friday. We were not told of any of these times. When I was a collector as a student we worked extra long hours the two weeks around Easter to ensure that the rotas were not affected unduly.

Secondly, definitely not two weeks. All that willl happen is that everyone in the district will make a visit in their car to the local dump after one week, thus helping to clog up the roads and add to the emissions in the environment.

Martin Soley, Brookmans Park,

As usual, Britain you have got it all wrong and nobody has the guts to make radical changes. Containers should be placed at the end of a street (or group of streets, flats etc.-strategic points) and you should have to bring your rubbish to those containers, recycling too with green for glass blue for paper etc. This is what is done in Spain and Europe and I don't pay anything remotely like you do for your so called service once a week or fortnight or whatever the current false argument is. Ours is collected daily from central points with no dustmen runing up and down alleyways - you are all potty.

victor cowen, Malaga, Spain

Whatever happened to local democracy? I would gladly vote for any almost candidate in the local election who pledged to preserve weekly waste collections. But the candidates (and the main parties at national level) are curiously silent on a key issue which generates strong emotions (and admittedly divergent opinions) in households across the country. Thankfully, I at least know the voting record of my incumbent councillor - and can make sure he does NOT get my support this time around.

Larry, Tewkesbury,

I'm so glad that we don't have a fortnightly black bin collection, As our bin smells bad enough after just one week, I dread to think what it would be like after two! Fortunately we are "rural", so don't have a green bin either, and make lovely compost with veg peelings, shredded paper waste, shredded garden waste, grass cuttings etc.
No--fortnightly collectons are a bad idea!

Valerie Banks, BUXTED, East Sussex

If everyone reduces the amount of packaging brought home from the supermarket by trying to buy unwrapped or lesser wrapped food and goods, recycles glass and plastic bottles and drinks cans, refuses to use plastic bags - using biodegradable or natural fibre ones instead, reduces food waste by composting and only putting on the plate what is likely to be eaten and not buying food that is likely to be wasted, recycles clothing by taking it to charity shops, doesn't use disposable nappies, takes non-recyclable items to the local tip, recycles cardboard and paper, disposes of CD's, DVD's, videos, computers and any good unwanted items through 'freeecycle' or to charity, returns used water-cartridges to their manufacture for recycling...what is there left to put in black bags or wheelie bins? There is no need to be afraid that fortnightly bin collections will result in the plague.

Jan Pearson, Warrington, England

I live in North Lincolnshire, a few years ago the local authority (LA) provided subsidised garden composters to promote recyling. More out of the thrill of getting 'free' compost, rather than a desire to save the planet we have enthusiasticaly recyled all apropriate rubbish since.

Lasy year the LA moved to fortnightly collections and introduced a 'brown bin' to recycle compostable materials. We now have the nonsensical system that compostable material is removed in the brown bin by a vehicle and travels miles by lorry to be composted. A further vehicle picks up papers and tins and then another vehicle picks up the 'normal rubbish' once a fortnight which last year stunk, was full of maggots and overfilled and we are only a two person household.

Many of my neighbours with larger families reguarly take rubbish in cars to the recycling centre as their bin overflows.
The system is hypocritical, is an additional tax and is causing harm to the enviroment!

Martyn Wilkins, Barrow upon Humber, England

My local council (Bury) switched to fortnightly collections some time ago and as a family we had enormous problems trying to cope with the rubbish. We were already recycling everything we could. I ended up having to make a fortnightly trip to the local tip with all the excess rubbish that the binmen wouldn't take - a five mile round trip and hardly a green option. There I usually joined a hundred yard queue and waited about 30 mins along with those in the same boat as me.
I phoned the relevant office to ask for some help and advice about how to manage the problem. The lady on the switch said I'd be very lucky to speak to the right person because the lines had been jammed with callers complaining but I persevered and got through. When I suggested he might be used to the nature of my call he bizarrely claimed that hardly anyone had problems with the new system.
Fortunately just before the last local elections politics and commonsense took over and we are back to weekly collections.

Russell Allen, Bury, Lancashire

We already have fortnightly collections. When they were first announced I was incredulous as to how we would cope. Our wheelie bin was full every week, what on earth would we do with twice as much rubbish waiting for collection? Guess what? We now don't even fill the bin over a two week period. We have a recycling collection on alternate weeks and it's amazing how the discipline of limited bin space makes you careful to recycle all the tins, plastic bottles, paper, glass. We used to put garden waste clippings, grass etc in the bin because it was easy. Now we have a compost heap. I probably wouldn't have done that if I could have just binned it all. I live in rural Surrey and I haven't noticed any more flies, rats, foxes or smells either. I've got to say that I was very much an anti to fortnightly collections but now I think it has made us recycle more and it's a good idea. It's one of those old adages. "Rubbish expands to fit the space you have to keep it". It's true.

Sammy, Farnham, UK

With the increase in the Rat population, Councils that adopt the fortnightly approach to bin collection are creating a health hazard for all their voters who live in their area. Our Council, (SOLIHULL) rely on the use of Black Plastic Bags, which are often torn by magpies, cats or foxes which then provides a ready meal for the RATS.

I say keep the weekly collections.

Colin Pike, Solihull,

Bags "torn by vermin" are probably just torn by cats! Put them in the wheelie bins or dustbins.

Andrew, Cambridge,

Copy of protest e-mail sent to Ben Bradshaw.

I was astounded to read in today's "Times" that, in your capacity as Environment Minister, you consider that fortnightly rubbish collections do not constitute a health hazard. If reports of another hot summer are correct flies, maggots and rats will certainly be prevalent and will be a danger to the environmental health of communities inflicted with this cost cutting exercise. If, as has been suggested, the reason is to encourage people to recycle more, I think you will find the opposite will happen and everyone will insist on their perishable rubbish being collected weekly and will stop recycling in protest. You will also encourage normally law abiding citizens to fly-tip their rubbish to get rid of it from the vacinity of their homes. One thing the electorate will draw a line at is any perceived danger to their and their families health so I believe you should think again before dismissing these concerns as non-existent.

Patricia Maitland, St Albans, Hertfordshire

I am amazed at how selfish people can be. We have to do something regarding our waste. Where I live we had had 2 weekly collections for years, fantastic and I have a family of five .
It clearly helps to reduce waste without excessive cost. So what if we have to clean our bins out occasionaly and think about how we dipose of rubbish. If the lid is closed you won't get rats. If it doesn't close you have to much rubbish so get rid of it yourself. The alternatives are far worse. We'll all be living in a giant land fill if we don't do something.

Ali, Petersfield,

Blah blah blah - complaining and whingeing. Alternate weekly collections (green and black bins) are fine here in South Cambs - just make sure you put food in bags first (and not just empty it into the bin), and PUT YOUR BINS IN THE SHADE!!. Our green bin is almost as full as our black - only irritation is that the local council don't take plastic yet.

The Daily Mail are doing us all a disservice

Andrew, Cambridge,

We are told that reducing rubbish collections is not about saving costs at all, but a green measure. But the advice from Rushcliffe is to wrap rubbish in nespaper and plastic bags, in which case they can't be recycled. Hmm. No wonder I'm confused.

Austin, London,

My Council (Harrow) has a weekly collection of Organic recyclable waste, and fortnightly collection for other recyclables, alternating with a fortnightly other rubbish collection. Now that I can recycle so much more, the "other" waste collection bin is not even half full. I think a monthly collection of that would be acceptable.

Roger Horne, Harrow, Middlesex

Increasing numbers of sensible people are insisting on maintaining weekly rubbish collections but many of us are also in revolt against the forced provision of wheelie bins onto our streets.
We see no reason to spoil our streets with these ugly bins and no reason to change the bag collections that we are all used to.

E.R.Casey, Dudley, West Midlands,

Nothing is going to convince me,and many others, that fortnightly collections of rubbish do not increase the likelihood of smelly pollution in summer and the possible spread of vermin and disease as a result. This is simply another attempt to justify even higher council tax rape of the community

mike goodwin, potters bar,

Fortnightly rubbish collections have been introduced by my local council and since then I have noticed an increase in flies particularly in hot weather. I agree with recycling but not at the expense of public health.
I follow all the guidelines regarding double wrapping, washing out containers prior to disposal but my bins still smell. In addition we are only allowed one bin per household unless there are five people living at the address. As a family of four I struggle to contain all the rubbish in one bin especially if I wish to close the lid correctly. I recycle what I am allowed to. I feel weekly collections of household waste should be reinstated as I feel strongly that public health is at risk if overflowing, smelly bins are to continue.
I feel that I would make greater efforts to recycle if I was not struggling to cope with the extra problems caused by having my household rubbish decomposing for a fortnight outside.

Elizabeth Balcombe, Leatherhead, Surrey

So tell me how to reduce the 'waste I produce' when I have no control whatsoever over the excessive packaging that comes with everything from food to computers? Food waste? I don't 'waste' any. Show me where to buy oranges without orange peel, pees without pods and meat without any fat on it and I will be delighted to help.

And when empty office blocks are left lit all night and right through the weekend, then - but not til then - talk to me about expensive energy saving light bulbs.

Best wishes

Tony Jones, Grantham, UK

In Nice, with similar council tax charges to UK cities, refuse and recycling material is collected every night, as are large items and without any extra charge. In addition, recycling banks are to be found within a few hundred yards of residential buildings. In contrast to UK cities with over-flowing refuse bins on every street, Nice is a city that looks tidy and smells sweet. Perhaps city administrators in the UK should be paid to come here and discover civilised solutions to the problems of refuse collection. So far the solutions they have proposed in the UK manifestly do not work. And what better incentive than the thought that there are worse places in which to spend a few days exploring viable new solutions to intractable old problems.

David Thomas, Nice, France

It is not the man in the streets fault that there is so much waste.
So much drops through our letter boxes every day and every trip the supermarkets adds to this problem.
We have a weekly collection and only to-day our road was scattered with rubbish from sacks torn by vermin.whilst waiting collection.
This suggested policy will lead to more bonfires polluting our air and more dumping of rubbish leading to health hazards.
Finally what do we pay this ever increasing COUNCIL TAX for.

Bernard Parke, Guildford,

I'm sure that these 'findings' will soon be wheeled out to justify further increases in council taxes. I've 3 bins in my kitchen for glass, plastic and general waste. Unfortunately my local council (Wakefield) seems to have missed the point completely, providing an additional bin for paper which prohibits shedded paper. Surely recycling should be promoted as a workable alternative not made as dificult as possible.

DJ, Pontefract, UK

Odd, most of those paragons in Europe who recycle so much more than we do get their rubbish collected at least twice weekly - maybe we should try that approach?

As for claims that it improves the amount of recycling, does reducing collections actually increase the amount recycled? Or, as its just a percentage, does it just mean that more rubbish is fly-tipped and not counted?

Mike Bibby, St Albans, England -not EU

Where will it end? There seems an almost unstoppable green lobby making rules and dictating policy that simply makes no sense from rubbish collections to the dreaded wind farms etc etc - where is the joined up thinking?

What on earth are the opposition (the conservatives) doing to stop this madness? Nothing that’s what, nothing with their leader further fuelling the green lobby even when the sums just do not add up.

An increase in the rat population is a given though what odes this matter after all do we hear about the ever increasing cases of TB, a disease that was all but eradicated from the UK a few years ago (my profession is science with an interest in TB).

What’s needed is for the UK press (for once) to work together in getting the green debate into a sensible perspective where the figures add up, come on chaps show us you can do it.

Dale Dobson, Wokingham, England

I have been using wheelie bins and recycling boxs for 2 years and have never had a problem with flies or maggots, it seems to be the people who do not use these bins who have a strange misconception. If you use a bin liner and put your waste into small bags before putting them in the bin then you will have no problems.

If you recycle properly a fortnightly collection is OK but if you dont recycle then you are in trouble.

May I suggest that the biggest cause of rubbish, flies, vermin and litter are black bin bags that have split open.

Peter Mallinson, Glasgow, UK

It is perfectly possible for weekly collections of unrecyclable material to coincide with weekly collections of the recyclable. It just costs more. Council dedication to saving the environment is blown by the selective nature of collection of recyclable materials, especially outside cities. If I wish to recycle cardboard, for example, I have to make a round trip of 80 miles; a waste of fuel and a major contribution to the carbon footprint.

Tom Fallowfield, Braemar,

people will still throw away food by simply utting it in the rubbish bin and this will contaminate the ground where it is disposed of by the council/s .Time will tell when we see the return of old disease/s or maybe not :? It is at present well known that T.B is on the rise again will we see the rise in such diseases as cholera return to this country once again or even the the black death plague brought in by the rat increase ! all because of recycling is the main objective of this Idiotic Government trying to save the world !ask yourselves .

ronlever, leigh , u.k

Spin, Councils have funded a report to tell them what they want to hear. Re-cycling percentages have nothing whatsoever to do with how often bins are emptied. Green is an excuse used by these people more and more, by Local Authorities and the Government to reduce services and increase tax's. Its the perfect solution, the great get out clause: this is going to cost you in time, inconvenience, money and stink and if you object, why how dare you! it'll be all your fault if the planet goes to rack and ruin. Green Blackmail.

John.L, leeds, u.k.

What a load of rubbish !
My local council changed from weekly to fortnightly collections about a year ago now. We are a family of four who used to completely fill our wheelie bin once a week, during this time we did very little recycling (if any). Fortnightly collections now force us to recycle our paper, cardboard, glass, plastics and organic raw kitchen waste. This has reduced the amount of landfill waste produced by us by a half; granted I do have to visit the local recycling facility myself about once a month, but this is a small price to pay for reducing our landfill waste by a half.
Come on people we have to break this mindset that we live in a throw away society with limitless landfill resources, stop complaining and get on with it.

Paul Croft, scunthorpe,

Encouragement by providing a proper infrastructure is the answer. Recycling has to be made much easier before even considering reducing the weekly rubbish collections. Here in West Wiltshire we were just getting used to recycling and composting, with fortnightly rubbish collections, when the Council was forced to ban the depositing of household compostable waste and cardboard in the composting bin. So all this useful stuff just gets dumped with the ordinary waste. Result: full bins after a week. Unlike glass, cans and paper, plastic - the bulkiest waste - is not collected for recycling. The affluent have space for storage of recycleable material, gardens for composting, and motor cars to transport material to the local recycling centres (which are excellent); but what about those without these benefits?

Geoff Carr, Melksham,