Burning waste is “not enough” say campaigners

• Mar. 5 by Liam Richardson (1)

Despite recent improvements in recycling rates, Birmingham Friends of the Earth think that a lot more can be done to help residents recycle household waste.

The group believe that Birmingham City Council are missing opportunities to recycle more materials because of the use of the “Energy from Waste” plant.

A spokesman for Birmingham Friends of the Earth said:

‘Burning waste isn’t the best way, it should not count towards recycling targets as it’s neither recycling or landfill. It’s a dirty way of doing things.’

The Energy from Waste plant, in Tyseley, processes waste from across Birmingham through incineration, which produces energy to drive power turbines.

In a recent statement, Cabinet Member for Transportation and Street Services, Cllr Len Gregory said:

‘It’s very encouraging to see that nearly everyone is recycling at least one material, but if everyone recycled the full range of materials collected such as plastic bottles, metals or textiles, we could really improve upon these figures.’

Although acknowledging the additional materials that can be recycled, it appears that Birmingham City Council could do more to help people recycle these materials through kerbside collection schemes.