Barrow council makes £40,000 a month from recycling

13 January 2010

BARROW Borough Council gains around £40,000 a month on average from recycling, councillors have been told.

The council’s policy review officer John Penfold said recycling was worth £80 a ton under Cumbria County Council’s recycling reward scheme.

Recycling rose from around 370 tons in April 2009 to 550 tons in July 2009, then fluctuated during the rest of the year.

Mr Penfold said it was planned to increase recycling further using a new contractor, Biffa Waste Services Ltd. The council wants to raise its recycling performance from the current break-even point of 34 per cent to 42 per cent in 2010/11.

Mr Penfold thinks that a general five per cent improvement could be boosted by a further one per cent with the participation of schools and another two per cent through an extension of the bring sites.

“It is amazing that we offer a kerbside service but 10 per cent of the figure comes from recycling sites, and car parks like Hall Street attract a significant amount.

“If we can identify more strategic high-density sites for containers, there is the potential for a further two per cent.”

He told a council overview and scrutiny meeting that the 0-20 per cent recycling rate was worth £20,000 a percentage point; 20-30 was worth £25,000; 30-40 £30,000 and 40-48 £35,000.

At 34 per cent, the total income of £770,000 offset the costs of running the enhanced recycling service, he said.

Councillor Bob Maltman asked if the council was going to fine people for overfilling bins. Mr Penfold said the occasional side waste would be picked up but persistent offenders would be issued with a warning.

Councillor Jean Waiting noted: “I could take you to someone who leaves 11 black bins out. They don’t even flatten out cardboard boxes.”

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