Council Recycling Report

On World Environment Day (5 June), Manchester Friends of the Earth held a "waste day of action". The aim of the day was to gain public support for the campaign to improve the doorstep recycling photo: recycling box service in the Manchester area (see Recycling Round-Up). Members of the group held a stall in St Ann's Square asking passers by to sign a letter to Manchester City Council that requested improvements to the recycling service currently available. The signed letters, together with individuals' comments on what improvements they would like to see, were placed on recyclable containers in recycling bins for presentation to the council.

photo: woman recyclingMFoE's report on Manchester City Council's current recycling rate was that, according to last year's survey, they were in the recycling relegation zone but are struggling to pull themselves higher up the league.

Indeed, due to some recent improvements of the various recycling schemes, some people were happy with the service offered. However, everybody was interested in further improvements, particularly requests for recycling plastic bottles in addition to paper, can and glass recycling. Of particular concern was that those living in flats don't yet have any doorstep recycling facilities despite requests to the council, Emerge Recycling and so on.

photo: punters at the Manchester Friends of the Earth's recycling stall Manchester Friends of the Earth gained good public support on the day and will continue with the campaign, obtaining more signatures from the public, before presenting the "message in a bottle" to Manchester City Council.

Colette Humphrey, Manchester Friends of the Earth Waste Campaign (0161 834 8221, recycle@manchesterfoe.org.uk)

Useful Links

Let Us not be Soggy

A recent report with the moniker "Soggy Lettuce" has highlighted that the average person in the UK wastes £1,725 a year on food, luxury items, entertainment, travel, gadgets and hobbies - 50% higher than the average credit card debt in the UK (£1,140 in 2003). Average Brits waste 7% of their annual salary and men waste around £240 a year more than women. Money is wasted on food that goes off before it can be used, clothes and shoes that are never worn and club memberships that go unused. Lettuce apparently emerged as the number 1 culprit - 61% of households admitted to throwing out soggy remains each week.
Networking Newsletter #56 (July/Aug 2004) Contents Page Home     STOP PRESS     Latest newsletter
Events listing     Campaign contacts
Resources    Take our survey    Network for Success
Subscribe now!     Search this site

© Networking Newsletter (July 2004)