On the buses - Kidlington to lead new Cherwell recycling drive
Bus users in Kidlington are to lead the way in a pioneering recycling scheme. Cherwell District Council is launching a pilot project at bus stops in the village as part of its campaign to further boost the district’s already successful recycling scheme. The pilot is being funded thanks to a successful bid to the Oxfordshire Waste Partnership's New Initiatives Fund.
Ten specially designed recycling containers will be placed alongside existing litter bins at bus stops. The aim is to give people getting on or off the bus the opportunity to put papers, plastic bottles or cans into the containers so that they are recycled rather than dumped in landfill.
Cherwell's recycling team reckon that this could mean between 15 and 20 tonnes of material being recycled rather than dumped in landfill in what remains of the year 2008-9. Kidlington was chosen for the pilot because of its extensive network of local bus routes, but if the pilot is successful the scheme could be rolled out to the rest of Cherwell.
Cherwell District Council's portfolio holder for community, health and environment, Councillor George Reynolds, said: "We're working hard to extend the opportunities that people have to recycle rather than have waste dumped unnecessarily in landfill. This is the latest initiative that we've developed to try to build on the success of our recycling collections from homes."
"It also adds to the recycling facilities we've made available on our streets so that people can recycle while they are out and about. This is the first commuter-focused initiative of its kind in the county and so gives bus users in Kidlington the opportunity to lead the way."
The project is a joint initiative between Cherwell, the group Kidlington vs Climate Change and Kidlington Parish Council. Anthony Simpson of Kidlington vs Climate Change said: "We' delighted to hear that Cherwell District Council has succeeded in their efforts to secure commuter/community recycling units, to encourage us all to extend our good recycling habits from our home into the village. This will further reduce the amount of waste being sent to landfill, which is great news for taxpayers and the environment."
In the year to 31 March 2008, Cherwell achieved a recycling rate of 48% - that's up around 3% on the previous year. That rate could put Cherwell in the top twenty recycling councils in the country. Other councils in Oxfordshire, who are members of the Oxfordshire Waste Partnership, will be watching how Kidlington gets on to see if the scheme could be rolled out to the rest of the Oxfordshire.
