Lack of Joined-Up Thinking

Update: At a meeting last night I heard an explanation for the decision to centralise the glass recycling facility: injuries had occurred during collection of the old containers. The new bottle banks are bigger and safer and have the added advantage of a smart feature which should ensure timely collection. There was no recognition that the service to residents had been effectively cut, nor of the impact this has had. Glass recycling can now only be achieved, for the vast majority, by driving to Wickes car park. (Havant Recycling Centre does not accept glass.) The bottles must be kept at home or in the car until a visit is possible, effectively transferring the burden of safe storage to domestic users. An East Street resident reported that, having no car, her pile of items was getting out of hand and she had suffered an injury from cut glass. Other people pointed out that the access to the new bottle bins is uncomfortably high for some women, people who have experienced height loss through ageing and wheel chair users. There were several reports of residents giving up and putting glassware in with the household rubbish. There is an expectation that domestic glass collection will be included in the regular green bin collection within a couple of years. In the meantime, residents have experienced a considerable cut in service. It is incumbent upon the contractor to come up with a solution which both protects their operatives and maintains the existing amenity; instead, residents have had to adapt to and accommodate what is most convenient and cost-effective for Norse. It might be well to reflect upon the nature of this relationship and remind ourselves that they serve the community - not the other way around.

THe Glass recycling scheme was OK now its rubbish for all the reasons given + of course increased carbon to get the glass to the bank!

Well said Lucy. There are a number of unwanted consequences to the change in bottle banks. The old ones could be opened so a whole lot could be put in at once, now they have to be posted one by one which takes a lot mote time. I suspect this contributes to the number of bags left by the side of the banks. They are too far away for a lot of people who are now putting glass in their black bins. There still in no glass recycling bin at St Albans - long promised, not delivered. Why? On line consultations are excluding a significant number of the disadvantaged and they are likely to be the most affected.