Recycling revolution

OLDHAM’S recycling rate has more than doubled in the last three years, lifting the borough from among the worst in the country to one of the best.

The introduction of managed weekly collections and a brand new recycling centre at Arkwright Street are among the reasons why the town is on the up.

But why is it so important that we continue with our recycling efforts and how will a rising rate benefit the borough? DAWN MARSDEN investigates.

IN 2006, Oldham’s recycling rate was in the bottom 5 per cent in the country at just 15.5 per cent.

Fast forward three years and the rate has soared to 37.2 per cent, putting the borough third in Greater Manchester behind Trafford and Stockport.

The road to recovery began in October, 2007, when the council introduced managed weekly collections (MWC) to 91,000 households.

The MWC scheme provides residents with brown bins for plastic, glass and cans, a bag for paper and card and a caddy for food waste, making it much easier to separate general waste from recyclable material.

General waste in grey wheelie bins is only collected once a fortnight to encourage people to maximise their recycling. Statistics show that since MWC was introduced, Oldham’s paper and card recycling rate has soared by 94 per cent since 2006, while the rate for plastic, glass and cans has shot up by 71 per cent.

Oldham is doing particularly well with food waste and the town’s weekly caddy collection is the third largest in the UK thanks to a close relationship with WRAP, a not-for-profit government-funded company.

The amount of refuse sent to landfill has also been slashed by 25 per cent to 54,492 tonnes.

Councillor Mark Alcock, cabinet member for environment and infrastructure, said: “Oldham has woken up to the importance of this issue and made fantastic strides in improving its recycling rate.

“That has been down to the endeavours of our staff and particularly the enthusiastic efforts of residents since the introduction of the managed weekly collections.

“We invested an additional £500,000 in 2008 to make sure this scheme was a success, offering a service that would meet the diverse needs of all our communities.

“We clearly needed to raise our game and our recycling rate has now more than doubled in three years. That has seen us jump from bottom to third place in the Greater Manchester league table, and also into the top third of local authorities nationally.

“We can’t be complacent, however, and are focussed on doing whatever is necessary to continue our upward trend.”

In addition to MWC, the £33 million refurbishment of the Arkwright Street Household Waste Recycling Centre will make the site more convenient for users and cause as little disruption as possible for near-by residents. All processing facilities will be self-contained with procedures in place to prevent litter, odour and noise pollution.

Councillor Alcock said: “Arkwright Street now boasts state-of-the-art recycling facilities and the benefits, on top of the significant jobs boost, are to revolutionise the way we deal with waste.

“This refurbishment has made it far easier for residents to segregate and recycle even more household waste. It is now a much easier to use and a safer environment.

“Our aim, and firm belief, is that these changes will eventually lead to the vast majority of waste taken there not going into landfill.”

Oldham’s impressive improvements were highlighted when the council narrowly missed out on a prestigious accolade at the National Recycling Awards — it was shortlisted in the Local Authority Target Success category.

But boosting the town’s recycling rate will not only go a long way to creating a greener, cleaner, more environmentally friendly borough — it will also save money.

All local authorities have recycling targets, with heavy fines for those that fail to meet the required rate.

Councillor Alcock added: “Targets are set by the EU and then passed on by central government.

“While there always remains the potential for us to be fined for poor performance in future, I’m happy to say that at present we are exceeding our targets.

“Our recent successes are evident, but we must continue to improve our recycling rate because the potential benefits to council tax payers are significant.

“Slashing the amount of waste we bury in landfill isn’t just environmentally friendly, it can also lead to significant savings and free money to be used on front-line services.”

Local youngsters are getting in on the recycling act with a number of schools gaining eco status.

To achieve the accolade. pupils must prove their green credentials through recycling, reusing and reducing as well as making sure all their daily processes are environmentally friendly.