Recycling across the area

[Fester]

Now that the building work on our house is at an end, we have dived in to the wonderful world of recycling this week.
Here is a quick list of the issues that I have encountered this week.
Bearing in mind there are only two of us, I cannot fathom how larger families are coping...(I suspect that many are not even attempting it)

1. Unable to fit all the cardboard and bottles into the same plastic box. (OK, its WAS xmas I suppose)
2, Tried to get that plastic box emptied, (forgot to leave it out the previous night) ... but got ignored by the hi-vis guys rapidly driving off down the road.   
3, The white bag for plastic was left out, and was weighted down... but it blew 30 yards down the road and emptied itself! I picked up as much as I could, but I reckon quite a bit escaped.
4, But it all balances up, because I then 'inherited' about 60 bottles and cans that had blown from someone elses bins into my patch!   So I picked those filthy items up, and put them in my bins.
5, Food waste.... thus far I cannot face having food waste hanging around the house, or outside where animals roam, so that is just a step too far for me at the moment.
6, I noticed that much of todays packaging, for food or Xmas gifts, is a mixture of cardboard and plastic (or acetate film)
In this respect I have tried to rip it up and seperate it.... but it is a balls-ache. 
7, I got the mother of all paper-cuts from outsorting some paper and acetate... and I hate the world at the moment.
8, I don't like the choice of having all these different bags / boxes littering my house..OR being left outside at the mercy of the elements and vermin.   But then again, at least I have the room for them.... I have no idea how other peopleare expected to manage.

Hopefully I will get my 'eye-in' with this re-cycling lark...and I will find better ways to manage it going forward.
I have to say that I am 100% in favour of recycling... it is completely logical and morally correct.
However, I just wish that the local authorites would get their best brains on the topic to make it easy for us to do.

[DaveR]

I just wish that the local authorites would get their best brains on the topic

[Ian]

Food waste.... thus far I cannot face having food waste hanging around the house, or outside where animals roam, so that is just a step too far for me at the moment.

I agree. Food waste in the winter is bad enough, but in the long, hot days of summer it's simply unhealthy. Far better to either feed the birds or, possibly better, plough it into gardens.

[Yorkie]

A lot of food waste can be recycled at home.  Much of the stuff one throws away can be washed and made into delicious soups.  For example outer leaves of cauliflower, potato, carrot, parsnip, swede and other vegetable peelings can all be used with the introduction of some stock and seasonings.   Stock can be made from offcuts of meat, bones and clean leftovers such as chicken carcasses etc.  Marmalade can be made from orange, lemon and other citrus peels, chutney from surplus veg and fruit, it's just a matter of finding a use for all this stuff.

You can even brew your own alcoholic beverages!   That should appeal to some people!   L0L

Apart from the recycling aspect it is all good fun!   ££$

Try this one:  http://www.boldsky.com/cookery/soups-snacks-drinks/vegetarian-soup/vegetable-peel-soup-recipe-250211-aid0111.html

[hollins]

I remember reading with great sympathy about the problems you all had in the Three Towns when recycling was introduced. At the time we had a excellent fortnightly service. You could set your watch by them they were so reliable. This all changed three weeks ago when Conwy Council in their wisdom stopped that service. Recycling bins were delivered and a promise of a weekly collection. Three weeks later and still nothing has been collected so after a few phone calls to the council we find out that amongst the changes made to rural collections they are refusing to pick up rubbish from people on adopted roads. People in this situation are to take their rubbish to the nearest road - sometimes a mile or more away. The trouble is in their incompetence they have forgotten to tell people that.
On our lane we have two elderly widows one of whom cannot drive so for them it would be an impossible task.. Goodness knows how many people in the rural areas are still in the dark about this and waiting hopefully that their bins will soon be emptied.

[Fester]

That's absolutely outrageous Hollins, and a flagrant abuse of your council tax payment.

The teething troubles which we had in Llandudno were as nothing compared to that fundamental problem.

My issue at the moment is that 8 houses from lower down my road put their recycle bins, and their normal bins on the drive that I walk down to my car.  So I have to walk through a 'gauntlet' of 16 bins to get out of my house!

When it is very windy, there is loads of rubbish blowing around the road, and milk cartons etc, trapped by the wheels of our cars.

If the Council Management don't act on the problem your neighbours face, I would immediately refer it to my MP, or AM.
After all, what do we pay them for?

[Yorkie]

That's not all you pay for!   After the recycling people have thrown your green bag around a few times and virtually destroyed it, they charge you £1.50 for a new one, providing you go to Mochdre to collect it!   

[Bri Roberts]

Yorkie, I am sure we bought our last one in Llandudno Library.

[DaveR]

My issue at the moment is that 8 houses from lower down my road put their recycle bins, and their normal bins on the drive that I walk down to my car.  So I have to walk through a 'gauntlet' of 16 bins to get out of my house!

[Ian]

we find out that amongst the changes made to rural collections they are refusing to pick up rubbish from people on adopted roads

H;  do you by any chance mean 'unadopted roads?  If so, then there are a fair few in the area, and certainly where we live the council has never driven them to empty bins. Unadopted roads can be a nightmare, because the legislation covering them is so incredibly complicated.

[hollins]

Yes, sorry. I should have said unadopted roads.

[Ian]

There's a pdf on Unadopted roads, which I can attach, if you're interested.  It's pretty dull reading, as it's a lot of legislation and definitions (think I'll wait for the film:-), but the gist of it seems to be that if you live on an unadopted road you may never find out who the owner of the road is, you may not be able to park on it, and yet the council can carry out 'necessary repairs' to the road and then charge you for them, which I find quite worrying.

[hollins]

Thanks Ian. This is all a bit beyond me but Mr Hollins would be interested in the pdf please.
In our case the ownership of the road is clear. It is partly us and partly a farmer.

[Ian]

One pdf as promised...

[Minime]

Theres a tree blocking the road on an unadopted road.  Who would be responsible for clearing it - its in the pwllychrochan woods.  Young lad said he was going to ring his dad but for future reference who would you contact?