How very dare they!

Our council are on the ball where household recycling is concerned, their enthusiasm is commendable, but a little over the top sometimes. They supply us with three wheelie bins, a red one for cardboard and plastics, brown for garden and compostable waste, and a grey one for general rubbish that can't be recycled, this goes to landfill.

Then we have two plastic boxes that we put out on the pavement once a fortnight, a blue one for paper, and green for glass and tins.

I am a keen recycler as I believe we should not be throwing everything into a big hole in the ground, so I diligently sort out my waste and put it in the right container.

However I have just had a letter from the council, not addressed to myself, but a general letter with just the address on the front. It was posted on the other side of the country, in Ellesmere Port. It says, and I quote....

'During April 2010 it was noted that a number of homes in your area did not present material for collection'.

It was in reference to the boxes, it then goes on to explain what should be put into them. I was furious, how dare they send me this letter. Do they think I am dim, or can't be bothered. I was on the phone immediately to the Waste and Recycling department.

I explained the reason for not putting my boxes out on the collection dates, I have a perfectly simple and logical answer. I create very little to put in them. I don't buy newspapers or magazines, so it's only the free papers and junk mail that goes in the box. I drink hardly any wine maybe a couple of bottles a month, and I eat mainly fresh food. In the picture you can see an empty wine bottle and an empty olive oil bottle, most of the cans are from Ben's dog food.

What is the point of putting my boxes out every time when there is so little in them, why make the lorry driver stop for such a piddling small amount, and what a good idea it is to wait untill the boxes are full before I put them out. By the time I had finished my rant the woman was apologising for sending the letter. I should think so to.

After I put the phone down I noticed a council van parked outside, two young ladies have been hovering around for a week or so. I have spoken to them before about recycling so I went out to ask them about the letter. They told me that the council send people out to do surveys on collection dates to see how many are putting their bins and boxes out. All those who haven't, get the letter. How ridiculous is that. What about people who are away from home for a long time for whatever reason, illness or holidays? What about people who do as I do and wait till they have a substantial amount to be collected? Why don't they knock on the door and ask at the time why they haven't put their box out?

Sending a letter is a sneaky way to do it, and I suspect it's just an excuse to give people a job. The council should stop harrassing innocent Joe Public and pay more attention to reducing the rubbish they collect from businesses. Phew, I had to get that off my chest.