Don’t throw away recycling success
GUERNSEY has built up a very creditable recycling service. There was scepticism at first but I believe most people would agree that the present system is a good balance between what is affordable to the recycler and Guernsey’s need to dispose of its rubbish. Now it seems that the committee responsible for it wants to dismantle it. Charging 25p a bag will just lead to dumping and loss to Guernsey and now they want to close the bring banks. So in effect dismantling all that has been good as part of Recycle Guernsey.
What I would like to know is, what is the real cost to Guernsey? We hear that it will cost a million here and a hundred thousand there. What is not apparently taken into account in what appear to be these off-the-cuff figures is what it actually costs Guernsey once you have taken into account any profit – I hope there is some – of the recycled goods and set against the cost of what it would cost if we didn’t recycle. The landfill is full so it can’t go there but you can’t just say it’s going to cost X without the counterbalance.
For instance if the decision was taken to use Ronez quarry for landfill, what would that cost? If it was set against the recycle cost it would probably be cheaper to recycle and anyway it’s good for the planet.
So rather than throw away what is good I for one would prefer to see the cost of recycling absorbed into the States accounts so that we don’t see cliffs strewn with clear or blue bags, bonfires of rubbish which may contain noxious substances and marina and beach bins even more full of household waste than they are already.
Encourage more recycling, do not encourage people to do the wrong thing. Let’s be sensible and take into account a proper examination of all the costs and savings and human nature.
M BURROWS
jonesmnr@googlemail.com
