Forum Topic

Recycling problem

Can anyone suggest what can be done about the recycling collection in our flats?  We have a wheelie bin area for paper, tins and bottles.  Before the new arrangements these were collected each week without any problem.  Now, collections often don't take place, and in spite of many phone calls to Ealing the promised next day collection does not take place either.  I have made numerous complaints, have had people from Enterprise come here to see if there are any problems, have received letters of apology from Ealing, but still have this problem.  Nothing collected this week - Monday is the usual collection day - and I don't think we had a collection last week.  Or is it just another failure on the part of the contractors?

Nina Battleday ● 4848d14 Comments

It sounds like you need a councillor to take this up for you otherwise you'll just keep banging your head against a brick wall at Ealing Council. I am a regular at the tip these days because rubbish is not collected or more is strewn over the street than taken away. The guy there told me that Enterprise had been bought out by a French company and are no longer Enterprise although they keep the name. He also said that they realised after they had bid for the contract, undercutting the previous contractor that they had gone too low and went back to the council and asked for more money but the council said no. So the council got a good deal, the contractor can't deliver and meanwhile we are disposing of our own rubbish and sweeping our own streets. A complete farce, but not funny because we are actually paying for this 'service'.

Milena Vincic ● 4848d

Nina,I had hoped that we had sorted this out last autumn.  I am sorry that it has broken down again.  I have written to the head of service this morning.

Phil Taylor ● 4848d

I find twitter surprisingly effective: tweet the Leader, your councillors, Ealing politics, local reporters etc. Gets more of a response than emails I find.Unless you become a streetwatcher - that works!

Sara Nathan ● 4848d

Its funny how the waste and recycling works in some parts of the borough and not in others.

Philippa Bond ● 4837d

I wrote to Ealing three times asking them top take our green garden bin away as I no longer subscribe. Instead, they brought me another green bin. I have never had a reply about any of my complaints or enquiries from Ealing since I moved to Acton 2 years ago!

Mark Bird ● 4837d

LOL They are still desperately trying to sell that service.  We've been leafleted again.  We don't have room for wheelie bins and it's less stressful to take any excess green waste to a recycling centre at our leisure or to employ someone who will work on the garden AND take the stuff away. A wormery - especially a layered one is interesting to use.You can grasscycle and compost (compost bins are subsidised by LBE)  You can build your own compost bin and wormery.I still think it was a cynical way to generally introduce wheelie bins when an ordinary dustbin and using the Council's good recycling facilities should be enough together with making sure that landlords provide maintain and manage adequate space and facilities for recycling and waste.

Philippa Bond ● 4836d

You don't have to have a wheelie bin, we use the 3 green bags option.

Pete Grist ● 4836d

That's fine if it suits you.  I still use the LBE bags plus another couple when I cut a lot of stuff down.I don't think bags were in the original plan - they were asked for by residents because wheelies weren't sensible/feasible.  If you roll up the bags and keep them out of the light then they keep a long time.  Unfortunately because you tend to garden when the weather is nice they sometimes have to stand around a week (or more) while waiting for collection.The compostable bags although rather fragile seemed a good idea.  We used to buy those didn't we?  The bags are easier to give/lend/share with a friend.

Philippa Bond ● 4836d

I went to the re-cycling center in Park Royal the other day and was amazed to be given a sheet of paper telling me that i would be charged for all sorts of things that I thought I was supposed to be disposing of in a responsible manner. If the council continues to make it impossible to dispose of materials responsibly they will find people dumping these things illegally. Once again it will be the responsible people picking up the tab

Dennis Fuller ● 4831d

That would be Brent Council, but household waste is free in Ealing, as I would have thought in Brent. Building waste is a bit different. As I recall there is a limit on how much you can dispose for free at Greenford and you have to prove residency. Not unreasonably as there is a high landfill cost to the council.

Pete Grist ● 4831d

http://www.brent.gov.uk/services-for-residents/recycling-and-waste/recycling-sites-in-brent/abbey-road-brent-reuse-and-recycling-centre/Both Brent and Ealing are part of the West London Waste Authority.There are restrictions on vans as these tend to be used by businesses who should be paying for disposal of waste.You can hire a skip (from an a list approved and available from LBE).You can also hire various sizes of Hippo bag.  These large bags are available from DIY stores.If something still has life in it try and find another home for it eg freecycle or streetbank or dontdumpthat or advertising it on local websites like this and  noticeboards or ebay and gumtree.

Philippa Bond ● 4831d

I have found the staff at Greenford dump very unhelpfull.When disposing of a few heavy bags of rubble they stood there and watched me build a few steps out of tins of paint so that I could reach hurl them over the wall. they didn't lift a finger.The staff at Park royal on the other hand are very helpful taking stuff out of the car and disposing it for me.

Kim Rugg ● 4829d

What about the large bags that are an alternative to getting a skip or taking it yourself.  You can order them online or through a DIY shop and they come in different sizes and they collect it from you.  The one I know about is http://www.hippobag.co.uk/

Philippa Bond ● 4829d

There are at least two local ones.  Apart from advertising any bricks, doors, windows etc that you don't need on here, ebay, gumtree, streetbank.  Have you had success with anywhere else?http://osocio.org/images/uploads/riverside-2gr.jpg

Philippa Bond ● 4829d