Under the RecycleBank scheme, residents in the borough can have their recycling bins weighed by contractor Veolia ES, as the borough has switched to a commingled blue bin system.
Opening the launch ceremony, Cllr Liam Maxwell, the Royal Borough's lead member for policy, explained: “This scheme is about paying the public to recycle. The incentive is the more that your recycle, the more you get in reward vouchers and spending the vouchers locally is a help for local businesses.”
Mr Pickles said that the RecycleBank and Windsor and Maidenhead approach “shows some respect. It's not about fining people, it's not about bin policeman. Recycle and then we will ensure, or Maidenhead and Windsor will ensure, you get something back, something to spend in local shops.”
Chips
And, Mr Pickles touched on the issue of chips in bins which has been contentious in the past. Referring to the RecycleBank scheme, he said: “I think the future of the way we use chips in bins is entirely voluntarily . If you don't want to participate you don't need to participate, but if you are prepared to have the chip, all it simply does is to weigh the amount of recycling that you do and you will get almost back an almost instant email telling of you the credit you are going to get, you will get an email telling you when the collections are going to be.
“This is the face of modern refuse collection. This is working with the public, it's having the public on your side, it is treating the public with some respect. It is treating the public as a partner and not as the previous government did as the enemy.”
Benefits
She said: “Why is it so important that we get levels of recycling up? The straight answer is that burying waste in the ground is not the solution for the future, everything we do to recycle means that there is less that goes to landfill, which is absolutely critical. Not only are we running out of space, not only does it cost money to do that that and pay the landfill tax, it is not good for the environment.
“In this day and age things like wood, and glass and plastic and metal should not be going to landfill anyway, those are valuable commodities that can be recycled.”
The secretary of state continued: “This comes as part of a commitment by the new coalition government to be the greenest government ever, we are going to try and do this by encouraging you and your family and my colleagues to recycle, there is much more that can be done.”
Mrs Spelman said that although “recycling has increased quite a bit” she was aware that the amount of waste in still rising. And, she noted that talks will continue with retailers “about packaging to actually reduce the amount of things that you have to recycle or put in the black sack in the first place”.
Closed loop
One of the supporters of RecycleBank scheme is Marks and Spencer and Richard Gillies, director of Plan A and sustainability, spoke of the company's support for the voucher scheme and the importance of closed loop recycling.
Sue Igoe, UK managing director of RecycleBank commented: “It is fantastic to see so many local businesses in the Royal Borough getting involved. With 78% of reward partners being from the local area, and a great mix of national partners, there really is a reward for everyone. We want to see more residents redeeming their well-earned rewards, saving them money on everyday items.”
Paul Levett, deputy chief executive for Veolia Environmental Services, said: “The single blue bin for recycling materials makes this a genuinely easy, convenient and rewarding experience for households. This is vital to ensure that participation and recycling rates grow and remain high for the long term.”
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