Commercial and industrial waste is now included in the Landfill Diversion Target, which outlines the amount of waste that can be sent to landfill each year.

The changes have been implemented across the European Union, and all the countries now have an easier to reach target, but one that will still bring a great challenge.

England should only send 21,773 tonnes of biodegradable waste to landfill across 2010, and this amount should fall to 17,844 in 2013.

The furthest set target, reaching way ahead to 2020, outlines 12,491 tonnes for the whole year.

However, recent recycling figures across the UK are shedding some light onto how difficult these targets may be, especially when recycling rates across the board are so low.

Last year, Birmingham diverted over one million tonnes of waste from landfill, but outlined nothing of how much it still sent to landfill each year.

Assuming that the 32% recycling rate across Birmingham quoted in the Birminghamnewsroom is correct, over two million tonnes of waste is still sent to landfill each year.

If only 21,773 is to be sent to landfill each year, then the two million Birmingham contributes is a worrying sign.

Cllr Gregory, quoted in the Birmingham news room, said:

‘Today’s figures clearly show the hard work of recent years is paying off. We are getting better at recycling; meaning the amount of waste we send to landfill is reducing.’

The 5p charge for all plastic carrier-bags sold in Marks and Spencers now go towards Birmingham-based charity Groundworks, who “work alongside communities, public bodies, private companies and voluntary sector organisations” to create real change in people’s lives through improving their environment.

So far, £2.2 million have been contributed to 61 Groundworks projects all around the country, improving communities with gardens, parks and play areas.

Groundworks first emerged out of the recession of the 1980’s,  when ‘the environment and social cohesion of the country was under threat’.

The first trust was such a success that projects sprung up all over the country, and now the charity are working harder than ever.

Birminghamrecycled have been looking into some of the projects dotted in and around Birmingham, and there is great work being done in Groundwork’s back-yard.

Renfrew Square near Castle Heath is a suburban area with little garden space, but Groundworks are turning unused space into a communal area with trees, shrubs and outdoor seating so that the community has a place to congregate.

Hawbush Community Gardens in Brierley Hill is another project within Birmingham that aims to benefit the entire community with a collective area for people of all ages.

An old urban farm is being turned into a sensory garden and quiet rural area, aiming to provide single mothers and local primary school students with a place to relax in an rural, environmentally-friendly area.

Other places in the Midlands are also benefitting, with Fenton in Stoke-on-Trent gaining an open area to decrease levels of anti-social behaviour and Gilmorton in Leicestershire, just east of Birmingham, receiving a renovation of the centre of their small rural town with fruit trees, garden features and greenery providing a place for the people to enjoy their lush environment.

“We do have local targets, with every store working towards waste and energy reduction targets”

All Groundworks projects work with volunteers from local organisations, councils and the community to benefit the local area, only with council and Marks and Spencers funding.

Marks and Spencers (corporate PR Manager Daniel Himsworth) also told me that “we do have local targets, with every store working towards waste and energy reduction targets, fundraising targets and every store has a ‘Plan A Champion’ to promote local activities and provide a central point in store for Plan A info and news”.

But, Birminghamrecycled aren’t normally so anti-recycling message; if you don’t re-use your Marks and Spencers carrier bags, someone still benefits in a big way, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t re-use your carrier bags!

The eco and ethical plan, entitled ‘Plan A’, outlines bold and adventurous plans to take on the environment almost single-handedly in the retail sector.

However localised targets are not being set and in the long run this may damage or destroy the aims of Marks and Spencer as a whole.

Marks and Spencer’s environmental plan

Founded in 2007, Marks and Spencer hit the ground running, ‘committing to change 100 things over five years –because we’ve only got one world and time is running out’.

They are already revolutionary with their saving of 387 million food carrier bags, re-using over 130 million clothes hangers and using 1,500 tonnes of recycled polyester for bottled drinks.

Their aims planned out over the next five years focus a lot on recycling, as these examples show:

• Collect at least 70% of the clothing hangers we use and re-use at least 85% of these by 2012.
• Help our customers to recycle 20 million items of clothing each year by 2015.
• Ensuring that by 2012 all packaging can be easily recycled or composted…

Why use local targets?

Local targets for local sources would increase commitment to the whole scheme, increase the public’s access to successes and failures, and increase that community-strong image that Marks and Spencers have created over the years.

What they are doing is brave, and successes up to now seem to be great in number but show signs of losing control.

A close-combat approach would gain all the more appreciation in The Midlands, and certainly encourage those environmentally shy to take more notice.

So where are the targets committing to completely filling lorries from their Shropshire dairy farms to packaging plants and then retailers in the Midlands by 2012?

What about committing to recycling or reusing all clothing hangers through Birmingham’s Rag Market and Oxfam links in 2010?

Are Marks and Spencers simply pitching plans and limited successes at an environmentally conscious audience, hoping to reinforce that image of the caring-sharing slightly more expensive Primark?

Brumcan was a small volunteer run organisation that worked in and around the smaller communities surrounding Birmingham and was modest in its approach.

Predictions on the Birmingham City Council Waste Management Strategy for 2006 to 2026 suggested that the tonnes of waste collected by The Brumcan service were to increase by around 30%.

However, in July 2005, it was ‘announced’ that the service was to cease. There was however, no actual announcement of this and the website is still running.

However, with recognition on the BBC local site and EU funding, they had clearly made a name for themselves as an organisation. Sadly, the same cannot be said for its recognition amongst the people of Birmingham.

For example, in the year ending September 2006 (after it was announced that the programme would cease), the Charity Commission website stated that Brumcan:

• Attended 39 community workshops and meetings
• Worked with a total of 15 different community groups
• Attended 7 outreach events
• Delivered 63 school workshops and assemblies
• Worked with 14 different schools
• Distributed 88 home compost bins

But no-one recognised, re-iterated and showed interest in what they were doing, and they are now quiet. Apparently, they are still running in Moseley, but the website is not updated and there are a lot of questions surrounding their presence in Birmingham.

It had existed since 1991, and offered services like doorstep recycling, volunteer material-sorting sessions and make countless appearances at charity and council events.

As Jane Trobridge points out in the BBC local article, Brumcan “collected from 20,000 homes in the city”.

Neighbourhood Renewal Funding (NRF) was not made available

All workers were either volunteers, part of council groups, or trainees taken from disadvantaged areas or walks of life.

Even with these benefits, council support was scarce, and Neighbourhood Renewal Funding (NRF) was not made available. Apparently, funding recycling projects does not constitute benefitting the environment.

So when EU funding fell through (European Regional Development Fund), there was little to be done.

According to the Charity Commission, the accounts are over a year overdue, so claims that the charity are still running seem unlikely.

However, Jane Trobridge told me:

“As it happens they (Brumcan) reintroduced recycling to Balsall Heath at some point in the year following that blog (The blog was written in June 2008.

They are now doing the same fortnightly collection that Moseley has, and I assume elsewhere in Birmingham has too“

Admittedly, their web presence is limited to their website alone, which raises questions as to whether or not they promote themselves effectively if they are still around. But, the original questions still stands;

Why were such a respected, proud and hard-working organisation not supported more effectively in Birmingham, both by the public and by the council?

Hopefully, Birminghamrecycling can do our part, and might even unearth some response from Brumcan should they still exist in our area.

But it may be time for Birmingham and Birmingham City Council to start helping out the people who are putting in more effort than the rest of us put together, because there are certainly more of them out there that aren’t getting the spotlight they deserve.