How Dutch Tackle Waste Charging
A group representing councils in England and Wales has set out three "pay-as-you-throw" schemes which it believes would be effective in reducing waste and increasing recycling. The Local Government Association says such schemes have been successful elsewhere in Europe, including in the Netherlands:
SACK-BASED SYSTEM
This involves households buying different sized pre-paid sacks or special tags to go on ordinary bin bags for general household waste. Maastricht is a Dutch city with 57,450 households, 60% of which are houses and 40% flats. It introduced a sack-based system of waste charging in 2000. Households can purchase 25/50 litre sacks, priced at 0.69/1.04 euros (47p/71p), which are collected weekly/fortnightly. Following the introduction of the system, the total amount of household waste fell and the recycling rate increased from 45% to 65% (compared to a national target of 53%).
WEIGHT-BASED SYSTEM
In this system, wheelie bins are fitted with chips to allow bins to be weighed when they are loaded onto refuse trucks - a system currently used for trade waste in the UK. Households are sent a bill (quarterly or annually) for the amount of non-recyclable waste they throw out. In the south eastern authority of Sittard, where just 25% of homes are apartments, they introduced a weight-based system for houses in 2002. As a result, general waste is down 41% and dry recyclables up 23%. The council estimates the system has resulted in savings of 1.1million euros (£748,000) per year.
VOLUME-BASED SYSTEM
Households choose from a range of wheelie bin sizes according to the amount of waste they think they will generate, and are charged accordingly. The city of Haarlemmermeer, near Amsterdam, operates a fortnightly volume-based collection system, where residents can purchase bins ranging from 80 litres (142 euros/£97) to 240 litres (215 euros/£146). Residents are fined for setting out extra waste. Recycling in the area has increased and the scheme is saving the council money, as it is cheaper to operate than incineration.
*Figures supplied by the Local Government Association
Belgium's Rubbish Solution
Councils in England could soon be allowed to charge residents for the amount of rubbish they throw away. But what effect have "pay as you throw" systems had in other countries? When I visited the Flanders town of Lokeren - half-way between Antwerp and Ghent - I was following in the footsteps of environment minister Ben Bradshaw. He went with a team of officials last year to see how this part of Belgium recycles more than 70% of its household waste. In Lokeren itself, the rate is nearly 80% - more than three times that in England as a whole. So how do the Flemish do it? Not long ago the cost of rubbish collection and disposal was "hidden" in the main local tax - as it is in Britain. But a few years ago the Flemish moved to a system where people pay a separate annual waste fee. In Lokeren, it's set at 80 euros (£56). On top of that, they pay variable charges based on the weight and volume of waste they leave for collection.
Chipped Bin
The idea is to encourage people to produce less waste and recycle more. For the keenest recyclers, the total final bill for the year including the fixed charge can be as little as £70. For those who don't control their waste, it can climb to nearly £180. The bins are weighed before and after they're emptied on the truck and the weights recorded in the cab. The system also reads a microchip under the bin lid which identifies it as belonging to that household. Some papers have dubbed this the "spy in the bin", but it can't see what you throw away, it merely confirms that the bin is yours.
Fly-Tipping Fears
At first, some families were hostile. Suspicious householders even weighed their bins on their bathroom scales because they didn't trust the council's measurement. Now, though, the vast majority accept the system as the best way of encouraging recycling and helping the environment. Although people were given the chance to buy locks for their bins to stop neighbours dumping their rubbish in them, only 300 out of 40,000 households asked for one. There was no significant rise in fly-tipping, and where illegal dumps did spring up the council quickly pounced on them and put up warning notices.
Chicken Solution
One family I met said the payment-by-weight system had changed their behaviour. They now tend to buy food with less packaging, like fresh fruit and vegetables. And because they are also charged for food and garden waste - though at a lower rate than other rubbish - they avoid using the green bin at all through a mixture of composting and using chickens, which gobble up much of their left-over food. The local authority has even arranged with local poultry dealers to give discounts on hens bought for this purpose. Dirk Strubbe, who runs municipal waste services for six Flemish councils, admitted there was some resistance to payment by weight when it was first proposed. He emphasised that the public must be on board first. "A large communication project has to be established to convince the population before you begin pay-as-you-throw," he said.
Pilot Schemes
The British government is expected to publish its long-awaited waste strategy review soon. There's speculation it may talk about giving councils in England the power to introduce variable waste charging. Some councils are already piloting the technology. Given that the tax on dumping in landfill is increasing by leaps and bounds - Chancellor Gordon Brown announcing another increase of £8 a ton in his Budget - councils are under enormous pressure to reduce their waste mountain. So it wouldn't be surprising if, given the chance, some councils follow the lead countries like Belgium have given.
PUTTING OUT THE BINS IN EUROPE
Some councils in the UK now collect rubbish fortnightly rather than every week - how does that compare to other European countries? Councils who have made the switch have seen recycling rates improve from 30% for compared with 23% still collecting every week. But the change in collections has been criticised, with complaints about vermin, maggots and odour from rotting rubbish.
MADRID, SPAIN
For central city dwellers in Madrid, rubbish collection can be relied upon at least six days a week. Apartment buildings have a communal wheelie bin which is left out overnight for early morning collection. Recycling barrels on the street allow Madrilenos to recycle glass, plastic and paper. There has been more publicity in recent years urging people to recycle - and about what household waste should not be thrown into landfills.
BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
In central Brussels, non-recyclable waste is collected once a week.
On other days, other waste which can be recycled, such as glass, plastic and tins, is picked up. Waste has to be separated by the householder.
In smaller towns, waste may be collected on a fortnightly basis. Rubbish collection also includes regular opportunities to get rid of larger items, such as unwanted furniture.
PARIS, FRANCE
In Paris, rubbish is collected at least once a day - either early in the morning or at night. Collection is sometimes contracted out by town halls to waste collectors. In addition, most apartment buildings have a recycling station with separate bins for plastics, paper, glass and other waste.
ROME, ITALY
In Rome, household waste is collected every day, including on Sunday, and on the majority of public holidays. The only days there are not collections are religious holidays such as Easter Sunday and Christmas Day. In central Rome, there are three or four rubbish bins for apartment buildings. Romans are not noted for their enthusiasm in sorting their waste into glass, plastic, paper or mixed waste. In 2005, the BBC's Jeremy Bowen in Rome reported that the city council had ordered some 2,500 new recycling bins, but finding recycling bins was still difficult. Italy lags far behind recycling rates of European leaders such as Germany or Denmark. In Naples, in 2004, schools were closed to protect children from health risks from garbage in the streets after the city's incinerators were overwhelmed with waste.
BERLIN, GERMANY
Residents in apartment buildings in the centre of the German capital have their rubbish collected once a week - but the system is a little more intricate than it first seems. Germans separate their waste into paper, glass, metal waste and mixed waste - and each of these is collected once a week, with collections on different days. Those living in private homes can request rubbish collection twice or three times a week, and pay extra in their rates for this service. Germans also have a system where they can get rid of items like furniture or old appliances free of charge - these larger items are then broken into separate recyclable materials such as metal or wood. The BBC spoke to staff and freelancers in European cities for this article.
