The new service, being introduced next month, will see refuse and recyclables collected on alternate weeks from wheeled bins. Funded by 1 million of DEFRA's 140 million recycling fund for local authorities, it will be a key part of Southampton's aim to improve on its 9% recycling rate.
Part of the Project Integra waste partnership with other Hampshire councils, Southampton is currently far behind the partnership average recycling rate of 21.4% and the target of 24% by 2005-06. Southampton city council opted for the fortnightly collection system as it has been successful in neighbouring Eastleigh and East Hampshire councils.
Despite 63,000 being spent on an awareness campaign, Southampton residents have been split between supporting and opposing the new scheme so far. But, in a new MORI Poll survey of 1,000 residents, the council found that if the scheme is explained to them, residents broadly support the scheme.
Based on information already in circulation, the survey found only 25% of residents were strongly in favour of the scheme, with 19% slightly in favour. However, when the scheme was explained to the survey respondents, 44% said they were strongly in favour and 23% slightly in favour.
Explanation
The explanation for survey respondents ran as follows:
“Up to 50% of household rubbish is recyclable, so by collecting it the amount and the cost of landfill will be reduced. The government has given Southampton city council 1 million to help achieve this. In order to meet the government targets Southampton city council proposes alternate week refuse collection. People would have general household refuse collected one week, and recyclable material the next. They say this would mean that people would have to recycle, as they would no longer be able to fit all their rubbish for a fortnight in one bin. It would also allow other recyclable waste –such as green garden waste – to be collected in future. The council considers that this scheme would also keep the extra costs of introducing household collection of recyclables to a minimum.”
Commenting on the survey's findings, Southampton's cabinet member for environment and transport, Cllr Jill Baston, said: “It's clear that most people support the council and its objective of improving recycling and the environment through alternate weekly collections.”
The new service will introduce blue-lidded wheeled bins for the collection of paper, plastic bottles and cans for 75,000 households by 2004.
Opposition
The council's introduction of the new collection service has not been helped by the opposition of the local newspaper, the Daily Echo, which organised a petition – signed by 3,600 people – to call for the scheme to be scrapped. The newspaper believed that “the city's rat population will rocket once the scheme is rolled out in October this year”.
But, the council now sees the independent MORI Poll survey as proof of residents' favourable opinion.
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