Monday 16th October 2007
CRR Takes Material Quality Issue to Parliament
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Paperchain's Chris White with Lib Dem environment spokesperson Chris Huhne |
The Campaign for Real Recycling last week (Wednesday 10th) held a parliamentary reception hosted by Jessica Morden, MP for Newport East. The well attended event gave MPs a chance to mix with stakeholders and campaign supporters.
Speaking at the event, Jessica Morden MP said: “My interest in the issue starts at home in Newport, which has the least expensive kerbside recycling collections in the UK, and with diversion from landfill predicted this year to be a respectable 36%. It seems so simple. How do other places manage to make it so complicated and pay more?”
Andy Doran of Novelis commented on behalf of the reprocessors: “Material quality is an issue for UK plc that needs urgently addressing. Recent evidence suggests that domestic collections are not a case of quality against price; the two can be achieved together with source separation.”
Campaign Coordinator Andy Moore noted that it was testament to the relevance of the campaign that it has drawn an ever increasing range of stakeholders. He added: “The support of many MPs today is indicative that this is an issue that should be of importance to central and local government. Now that the campaign has secured funding for a second year, we plan to put greater emphasis on improving our dialogue with local authorities and encourage them to take a closer look at the relationship between material quality and collection methods.”
Notes for Editors:
The Campaign for Real Recycling wants central government and local authorities to act urgently to improve the quality of materials collected for recycling in the UK. Real recycling is about maximising the economic, environmental and social benefits of recycling for everyone, from the local council tax payer to the global re-processing industry. Our concern is that collection systems that gather a range of different materials in one bag or bin and then compact them could permanently undermine the environmental and financial benefits of recycling. Our campaign aims to influence local authority policy and practice, and build consensus within the UK of the economic and environmental importance of highly separated collections.
Campaign for Real Recycling supporters:
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