Recycling query re PET plastic trays

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I get a lot of queries about why certain things are not recycled.

Below is a comprehensive response to one of my recent queries regarding plastics recycling, specifically whether there are markets for PET trays.

The current position is that there are well established markets for bottle derived PET but not PET trays.

The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) undertake market studies each year for the main recyclable materials including plastics and the 2016 plastics report published in April this year concludes that there are “no current end markets for separately baled clear PET trays”.

There are a number of reasons for this but principally the plastics reprocessors prefer the bottle PET as this is high quality and will not have been blended with lower quality polymers which is what happens with some trays.

The current suppressed oil price is also reducing demand for recycled plastics as plastics produced from raw hydrocarbons are actually cheaper to produce at the moment.

Plastics recycling is driven by economics and demand.  There are now c. 70% of local authorities collecting pots, tubs and trays on the back of public demand.

Based on data on the WRAP website, around 62% of all plastics collected (household and commercial) in the UK actually ends up being disposed of rather than recycled.  This is as a result of market demand.

This is a very disappointing statistic and needs action at a national level to address this.  Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority (GMWDA) is lobbying for consistency in the use of plastic polymers for pots, tubs and trays.

There is a good market for poly – propylene (PP) yoghurt pots but not all pots/trays are made of PP, instead cheaper alternate polymers are used that reporcessors do not want.

If PP has a sustainable market then a simple solution is for packaging manufacturers to consistently only use PP.  That will require either legislation or a binding commitment to implement that change, hence the need for central Government action to address this.

Other councils do collect these pots, tubs and trays but with the limitation on markets, very little of the non bottle plastic will actually be recycled, the most likely outcome will be that these materials are separated from the plastic bottles and then treated as a residue for energy generation.

These is a lot of detail on recycling on the WRAP website www.wrap.org.uk that may be of interest to people.

Also below is a link to the Recycle for Greater Manchester website, which also contains information on frequently asked questions on recycling.

http://www.recycleforgreatermanchester.com/recycle/faqs

Liberal Democrat Common Sense Prevails in Oldham EU Brexit Debate

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At last night’ Oldham Council meeting, in the debate on the report about the local impact of the EU referendum, Councillor Howard Sykes MBE, Leader of the Liberal Democrat Opposition, urged Council to take action rather than simply noting the report presented to members.

Councillor Sykes had previously written to the Leader of the Council, Councillor Jean Stretton, requesting that a special report on the impact of Brexit be prepared by officers and brought to Council for debate.

Councillor Sykes said: “Although disappointed by the result, I am a democrat and accept that the UK and Oldham voted to leave.  However we should not bury our heads in the sand; as elected members, it is incumbent and expected of us to inform ourselves what the ramifications of Brexit are in terms of the impact on our local economy, Council and people, and that we take action to mitigate them or maximise the opportunities.”

Rather than resorting to rhetoric and the report was just to note, Councillor Sykes proposed two common sense suggestions to take forward.

The first was that the Administration writes to the new Prime Minister Theresa May seeking a guarantee that the Government will make up any shortfall in European funding once Brexit takes effect.

Councillor Sykes stressed that many other Councils, Cornwall, Farmers and the Local Government Association were already ahead in the queue making this demand and Oldham should join them as soon as possible.  Graciously, the Leader of the Council Councillor Jean Stretton assented and agreed to Councillor Sykes’s suggestion that both she and he should write this letter.

The second was that the Council Leader assign specific responsibility for EU exit issues to a cabinet member with the expectation that this cabinet member consult from time to time with Group Leaders and with other elected members, and that reports be brought back to Council periodically.  The Council Leader agreed on the spot to assign this responsibility to the Cabinet Member for Finance, her Deputy Leader Councillor Abdul Jabbar.

All Oldham Councillors approved both suggestions.

Removal of market stalls from former site

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Presently sat in the Council meeting and two of my colleagues have asked questions in relation to Shaw Town Centre – in particular the cages behind Tesco Express and what is happening with the old market ground.

Interestingly enough work to remove the old market stalls will start on 25 July and will take approximately two weeks. Then on 8 August, weather permitting, work on the new car park will start. However this will mean that the car park will be closed for two weeks.

I am seeking clarification whether that is the full site – ie all the way down to Rochdale Road or just the old market ground.

Giant Rats a Real-life Horror Story

The Leader of the Opposition and of the Liberal Democrat Group on Oldham Council, Councillor Howard Sykes MBE, is calling for action to combat giant rats in Oldham Borough.

Councillor Sykes is proposing a motion on this issue to Wednesday’s full Council (13/07/16) and he explained why:

“The image of giant rats in our Borough may sound like a vision of horror from a James Herbert novel but the industry’s professional body, the British Pest Control Association, has recently issued a report identifying rats of increased size and with an increasing resistance to conventional poisons as a real problem in urban Britain.”

Commenting Councillor Sykes said: “In our motion we recognise that sometimes residents can inadvertently make the situation worse by resorting to ineffective off-the-shelf poisons.”

“This means that the rat problem is often not eliminated and repeatedly exposure to these poisons enables rats to become more resistant to them.”

Councillor Sykes is proposing that Oldham Council promotes the services of its professional pest controllers to residents, and the Chief Executive is asked to write to local MPs asking them to call for Government action in Parliament.

He explained: “Only a pest-control specialist has access to the most toxic poisons with the proven ability to eliminate even the most-troublesome and largest rodents.”

“Whilst calling the rat-catcher costs money it does provide a guarantee that the treatment will be effective and can be carried out without harm to family members and pets.”

Concluding Councillor Sykes said: “We have to recognise that Oldham Council and its residents can only do so much.  This is a national problem and our national Government needs to take action.”

The motion to Council reads:

Council 13th July 2016 – Notice of Opposition Business –

Combatting Super Rats

This Council notes that:

The British Pest Control Association (the BPCA) has said that rats are becoming immune to traditional pellets used by homeowners and that the poisons which can be purchased in supermarkets may actually be turning the rodents into ‘super rats’.

The Chief Executive of BPCA has said, “The rodents have become resistant and, in some cases, immune to off- the-shelf poisons to the point where they’re actually feeding off the toxic pellets, which means their size and strength is increasing.”

Genetic testing by Huddersfield University has revealed that the rodents have developed a mutation that allows them to survive conventional poisons.  In counties such as Hampshire, Berkshire, Surrey, Wiltshire, a Suffolk, and Kent, all the rats tested were found to have immunity to poison.

Rodents are difficult to kill with poisons because their feeding habits reflect their place as scavengers. Rats will eat a small amount of food and wait, and if they don’t get sick, they then continue to eat.

Council further notes that.

Stronger rodenticides can be more effective, but most are subject to strict legislation and must only be used by professional pest controllers.

The BPCA is now predicting that rats are likely to seek to enter homes for warmth and food during the winter months

Rats can squeeze themselves through gaps as small as three-quarters of an inch and are often found living under floorboards, in the walls or in the loft.

In 2015, rats measuring 50-60 cm (2ft) have been captured in places as far apart as Cornwall, Kent and Liverpool.

Rats can carry illnesses which can be passed to humans, including Weil’s disease, which has flu-like symptoms initially but can lead to jaundice and kidney failure.

Rats chew on wood and electrical wires causing significant property damage and posing a fire hazard.

Council believes:

That rats are a danger to the health and wellbeing of residents

That the problem of an increasing rat population, which is immune to many standard poisons, must be addressed

Inexpert use of poison can make the problem worse

Council resolves to:

Ask the relevant Cabinet Member(s) to request officers publicise the risk posed by poison resistant rats and offer advice as to how residents can ‘rat proof’ their homes, by for example fitting strips to the bottoms of doors, filling small gaps in exterior walls, repairing roof damage and covering drains to prevent entry via pipes.

Ask the Chief Executive to write to our three local Members of Parliament asking them to lobby the Government for national action on the problem of super rats.

Pingot Stream Widening / Bridleway Repair Project in Pingot Quarry

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The widening of the stream in Pingot Quarry will start week commencing the 11th of July 2016.

During this time please be aware of work in progress, and keep dogs under close control when in the quarry area.

Volunteers needed to restore and plant the banks of the stream, once the widening is complete.  Please see contact details below for anyone interested in helping.

For further information, please contact: Marian Herod, Secretary – Friends of Crompton Moor.  Mobile: 07792 156295 www.cromptonmoor.co.uk

Oldham Liberal Democrats voice concerns over changes to waste collection to three weeks

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We believe that the devil will be in the detail with these proposals.

I am sure that we are not the only ones thinking that this is going to affect service across the whole Borough.

Already in Shaw and Crompton, because our collection day is a Friday, we are more often than not getting missed roads because there just is not enough time to finish the rounds off.  This means coming back on Saturday mornings.  What will happen to other areas?

  • How is the service going to manage in bad weather? 
  • How is the service going to manage the bank holiday collections? 
  • What will happen with the excesses of general waste and recycling around Christmas and New Year?

Residents expect the Council to get the basics right and this is most definitely one of the basics that can cause them problems if it is not right.

We understand that there are going to be some difficult choices to make but we need to learn the lessons from other boroughs that have gone to three weekly – it has not worked well.

As a responsible opposition we will hold the Administration to account and will be seeking reassurances that the residents are not left without a functioning service and that the Borough does not become ridden with fly-tipping.