Cornwall homes recycle more rubbish - but flytipping incidents rise, figures show
THE amount of waste being recycled by households in Cornwall has increased - along with the number of flytipping incidents, new figures have shown.
Almost 4,000 more tonnes of rubbish are being collected for recycling at the kerbside, Cornwall Council figures prove.
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More households in Cornwall are recycling but flytipping is on the rise too
The authority's figures show that as the amount of recyclable material has increased other household rubbish has fallen over the past year.
In total 37,308 tonnes of rubbish was collected for recycling in 2012/13 compared to 33,456 tonnes the previous year.
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The average amount of rubbish put out for recycling per household has increased from 129.9kg to 143.3kg.
Figures for black bag waste collected from homes shows a drop of around 6,000 tonnes year on year with around 244,000 tonnes collected this year compared to around 250,000 tonnes last year.
However while household waste collected at the kerbside has been falling the council has reported an increase in the amount of waste being taken to Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs) with a rise of 4,000 tonnes to around 86,000 tonnes in 2012/13.
In a report to the council's waste panel officers state: "The major increases have been seen in the volume of garden waste, which has increased by over 2,000 tonnes. This may have been affected by the introduction of the kerbside garden waste subscription service, which has led to the public using the 'free' HWRC sites."
The council said it will continue to monitor waste levels at HWRCs as well as continue to use its numberplate recognition system which is used to restrict how much waste can be left at the sites.
However, the council has also reported an increase in flytipping incidents, continuing a recent trend. There were 4,365 incidents in 2012/13, up from 4,218 the previous year.
The cost of dealing with flytipping increased as a result going from £364,000 in 2011/12 to £377,000 in 2012/13.
The report to councillors explains: "It is believed that a combination of the van permitting system and reduced hours at the HWRC sites as well as the poor economic climate may have resulted in these increases as some businesses may have tried to avoid disposal charges by fly-tipping their waste."
The council has also seen an increase in landfill tax charges going from around £10.2m in 2011/12 to £11.5m in 2012/13. Forecasts suggest it will rise to £12.9m in 2013/14.
Current targets are to have recycling rates at 50 per cent by 2020 in Cornwall – the current rate is around 35 per cent.
2 Comments
by josdave
Friday, March 15 2013, 8:38AM
“What gives these lazy irresponsible people the right to turn areas of our country into eyesores? There should be really hefty fines handed out to act as some sort of deterrent instead of the derisory fines they do get now. At present it is cheaper to pay the fines if caught than to dispose of the waste legally and that should change. For the worst offenders a prison sentence and a criminal record would also be a consideration,”
by fullscott
Friday, March 15 2013, 8:13AM
“I bet the Recycling figures in Restormel have DROPPED since we had this new collection service. And the LITTER! Plastic and paper blowing down the road overnight from OPEN BAGS. The lorry CRAWLING along blocking the road. Empty boxes left on pavements - a HAZARD to people with sight problems. Brightly-coloured bags advertising which houses are empty to any potential BURGLARS.
Bring back the old system - it was CLEAN, EFFICIENT and USER-FRIENDLY.”