Around 40% of our domestic waste is green waste that we can put on our compost heap. If all of those who could, were to put this waste on their compost heap or in their compost bin, it would drastically reduce our growing mountain of waste. And it would supply a valuable resource for the garden.

In addition to our green waste, we can also put paper and card on our compost heap, not only can we put it on our compost heap, but in doing so it actually improves the compost that we produce.

Recognising the contribution composting can make to reducing waste, many local councils provide free or subsidised compost bins. If yours does not, ask why not.

I was pleased to see on visiting the farmers market in Guildford on Tuesday, that the local council had a stall promoting home composting. That and recycling and re-use. There was also lots of useful literature on the stall to help people, although I have to say the lady I spoke with was less than helpful.

This is what local councils should be doing, working with local communities, encouraging and educating, providing help and support, not as many councils are doing, using waste reduction and recycling as an excuse to cut services and force fortnightly waste collection.

Guildford collects waste weekly. I was told they achieve 30% recycling, which is the average for local councils on fortnightly waste collection.

The neighbouring Rotten Borough of Rushmoor, where several thousand households where forced onto fortnightly early this year, achieves an abysmal 20%, making it one of the worst performing councils in the country.

The experience of those on fortnightly has not been good. Regular trips to the local tip, fly-tipping, back garden burning of rubbish, increase in rats, maggot infestation of the bins, bad smells etc.

Rushmoor has been trying to encourage residents to put their green waste out for collection. The reason they do this is that it counts as 'recycling' and helps to artificially inflate their abysmal recycling figures. The green waste is carted halfway across Hampshire to be composted at Basingstoke.

The difference between the two neighbouring councils is that one tries persuasion and education to improve recycling, the other simply cuts services and hopes for the best.

Compost Heaven takes place 10am – 1pm Saturday 12 May 2007, The Green Ark, Lido Road, Guildford. There will be free compost and free compost bins (Guildford residents only). Also tool sharpening, visit to allotments, free refreshments.

Websites

 http://www.compost.org.uk/
 http://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/
 http://www.recyclenow.com/compost
 http://www.thetruthinrushmoor.co.uk/
 http://www.crow.uk.com/
 http://www.weeklywaste.com/
 http://www.dailymail.co.uk/bins
 http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/AxetheBinTax/
 http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/WeeklyRubbish/
 http://www.letsrecycle.com/info/localauth/league/2005ranked.jsp

References

Bin Them: New council proposals on rubbish collection are, well, garbage, The Times, 13 April 2007
 http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/leading_article/article1647550.ece

Lester R Brown, Plan B 2.0, Norton, 2006

Heather Coburn Flores, Food Not Lawns, Chelsea Green, 2006

Steve Doughty and Peter Stebbings, Are you next for bin round misery?, Daily Mail, 30 April 2007

Cindy Engel (ed), The Gaia Book of Organic Gardening, Gaia Books, 2005

John-Paul Flintoff, Eeeeeek!! Overflowing bins and pest control cutbacks are causing Britain’s vermin population to boom, The Sunday Times, 29 April 2007
 http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article1720064.ece

A G Fox, Dustbins may prove to be the battleground for May's local elections, letters, Daily Telegraph, 20 April 2007

Jason Groves, Taxpayers in revolt over bin collections, Daily Express, 15 April 2007
 http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/4468

Mathew Hickley, Fly-tipping menace of cutting the bin rounds, Daily Mail, 28 February 2007

George Jones, 9m homes no longer have weekly bin collection, Daily Telegraph, 19 April 2007
 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/04/19/nbins19.xml

Keith Parkins, Curitiba – Designing a sustainable city, www.heureka.clara.net, April 2006
 http://www.heureka.clara.net/gaia/curitiba.htm

Keith Parkins, Allotments at risk, Indymedia UK, 20 October 2006
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2006/10/353986.html

Keith Parkins, Recycling – a tale of two councils, Indymedia UK, 5 January 2007
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/01/359341.html?c=on

Keith Parkins, Fortnightly rubbish collection creating a plague of rats, Indymedia UK, 8 January 2007
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/01/359493.html

Keith Parkins, Recycling – the good, the bad and the ugly, Indymedia UK, 7 February 2007
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/02/361715.html

Keith Parkins, Recycling in the Rotten Borough of Rushmoor goes from bad to worse, Indymedia UK, 9 February 2007
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/02/361842.html

Keith Parkins, Green waste recycling, Indymedia UK, 12 February 2007
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/02/362125.html

Keith Parkins, Recycling and waste reduction being used as an excuse to cut services, Indymedia UK, 19 February 2007
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/02/362712.html

Keith Parkins, Fortnightly collection of rubbish an unmitigated disaster, Indymedia UK, 26 March 2007
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/03/366221.html

Keith Parkins, Gardens under threat, Indymedia UK, 26 March 2007
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/03/366232.html

Keith Parkins, Seed saving, Indymedia UK, 26 March 2007
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/03/366222.html

Keith Parkins, Fortnightly refuse collection, Indymedia UK, 10 April 2007
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/04/367639.html

Keith Parkins, Local elections bin backlash, Indymedia UK, 24 April 2007
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/04/368649.html

Keith Parkins, Bin revolution gathers pace, Indymedia UK, 24 April 2007
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/04/369120.html

Keith Parkins, Rats, Indymedia UK, 1 May 2007
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/05/369217.html

Nicky Scott, Composting: A Householders Guide, Green Books

Jill Sherman, Collecting dustbins fortnightly is a rubbish idea, say campaigners, The Times, 27 April 2007