Do waste Collectors mix black & green bins?

NurseBridie

My Black & Green bin were picked up today by the same truck and when I asked the chap if there were two compartments within the truck he did not think so and I could not see that there were two separate areas and that everything seemed to be mixed. I rang Oxigen who said yes they are separate but how can I believe them. I am now having difficulty getting my family to recycle as they believe that Oxigen are just mixing up both bins. So my question is are they always recycling? The truck today did not look like the normal Oxigen one so if say the split truck is out of action do they just mix everything up? I would rather not have a green bin and go to the recycle centre than be misled.

I've seen it once in Dublin.
We don't have recycling facilities in Éire, mostly we ship it to China to be burnt as a cheap fuel.

UK are the largest importer of Irish waste who in turn export it to China to fuel their grid.
Low and behold number 2 importer is China.
Add diesel transport and bitumen fueled cargo shipping to the cost of waste, the bag you put it in and the sticker that was required :rolleyes:

Recycle vs incinerate
UK Report
Irish Report

househero

Apparently our waste is too contaminated to recycle.

I blame you... For not taking off that jam jar lid in 1997

Metals can be sorted easily with magnets, conductivity and thermal characteristics. Glass is easily defined but takes 66% of the energy to recycle as it does to produce new. Electronics are usually >90% reusable. Plastics are a nightmare and while only 10% of the energy used to recycle can only be down-cycled and are extremely difficult to identify. Chemicals, no idea.

Reduce and reuse are former for good reason.

Grudaire

Sir Liamalot wrote: »

Metals can be sorted easily with magnets, conductivity and thermal characteristics. Glass is easily defined but takes 66% of the energy to recycle as it does to produce new. Electronics are usually >90% reusable. Plastics are a nightmare and while only 10% of the energy used to recycle can only be down-cycled and are extremely difficult to identify. Chemicals, no idea.

Reduce and reuse are former for good reason.

Is there a reason why companies don't opt to reuse glass bottles like they used to?

Currently we recycle all bottles even perfectly good ones, although I realise that they are probably no longer built to be reused..:(

djpbarry

Sir Liamalot wrote: »

I've seen it once in Dublin.
We don't have recycling facilities in Éire, mostly we ship it to China to be burnt as a cheap fuel.

UK are the largest importer of Irish waste who in turn export it to China to fuel their grid.

So let me get this straight….

The general waste that my council collects gets sent down the road to an incinerator here in London. But you’re telling me that rather than recycling my recyclables, or sending them to the same incinerator, they’re being sent halfway ‘round the world to burned in a Chinese incinerator?

That doesn’t make a lick of sense.

Judgement Day

It may not make sense but is it true? I know some years ago on the Isle of Man green glass collected for recycling routinely found its way into landfill sites. In my opinion, the whole recycling industry is a shambles but perhaps you know differently.

djpbarry

Judgement Day wrote: »

It may not make sense but is it true?

The simplest explanation is usually the correct one.

Why would local authorities create the illusion of recycling if everything is just being burned or land-filled? What would be the point of such an elaborate deception?

djpbarry

Sir Liamalot wrote: »

As interesting as your video is, I'm not sure what point you're trying to make with it?

I'm not really making a point...best do your own research. Video states 5% of plastics are currently recycled. Personally I doubt Ireland contributes much to that figure.

Greensleeves

NurseBridie wrote: »

My Black & Green bin were picked up today by the same truck and when I asked the chap if there were two compartments within the truck he did not think so and I could not see that there were two separate areas and that everything seemed to be mixed. I rang Oxigen who said yes they are separate but how can I believe them. I am now having difficulty getting my family to recycle as they believe that Oxigen are just mixing up both bins. So my question is are they always recycling? The truck today did not look like the normal Oxigen one so if say the split truck is out of action do they just mix everything up? I would rather not have a green bin and go to the recycle centre than be misled.

Is this the same Oxigen that was involved in the case described in this piece in the Dundalk Democrat in March 2013?

http://www.dundalkdemocrat.ie/news/local-news/order-could-cost-couple-hundreds-of-thousands-1-4851162

djpbarry

Sir Liamalot wrote: »

I'm not really making a point...

So why post the video?

Sir Liamalot wrote: »

Video states 5% of plastics are currently recycled. Personally I doubt Ireland contributes much to that figure.

Ireland's pretty good at recycling plastics, based on what I remember. Certainly better than the UK - all my domestic plastic waste is incinerated.

The_Captain

househero wrote: »

Apparently our waste is too contaminated to recycle.

I blame you... For not taking off that jam jar lid in 1997

That's an unfortunate reality of having a free green bin and a paid black bin. I know people who "hide" their household wate under carboard in the green bin to save from buying a bin tag

Qualitymark

Lidl and Aldi both allow you to leave all plastic packaging behind. I don't know how they feel if you bring it back after leaving the shop, though!

working fool

A proper split truck has two separate compartment
2 packers at the rear and 2 blades/walls at the front to empty the body .

Most split trucks are not 50/50 split because the weight of waste one side and recycling the other would leave it very unstable
They are usually 60/40 or 70/30
A lot of them have 3 lifts on the back .

A split truck should look like this
http://www.kannmfg.com/productimg/rl2-m2.jpg

The packers should work independently

If they are hidden behind curtains
Ask to see them working

Having a black curtain one side and a green the other is not proof of this .

Oldtree

Well thats a no then. The bins here are suppost to be collected every second week, (rubbish one week and recyk second week). And for the last 4 weeks (as I checked) both bins have been collected on the same day and they don't have a split Truck.

We recycle as a consumer here, but there is no follow on industry to do the recycling on the necessary large scale. While it is clearly a waste of our time to sort the waste at home I believe we should continue with the habit as we need to build up a reason for a recycling industry here, and I dont mean as an exporter of consumer sorted rubbish.

working fool

I haven't worked in that industry in a few years
But the ones who send round 2 different trucks do recycle

Oldtree

only one truck around here;)

recedite

Greensleeves wrote: »

Is this the same Oxigen that was involved in the case described in this piece in the Dundalk Democrat in March 2013?

http://www.dundalkdemocrat.ie/news/local-news/order-could-cost-couple-hundreds-of-thousands-1-4851162

Was that a road they built, or a "linear dump" :eek:

Oldtree wrote: »

..for the last 4 weeks (as I checked) both bins have been collected on the same day and they don't have a split Truck.

...While it is clearly a waste of our time to sort the waste at home I believe we should continue with the habit as we need to build up a reason for a recycling industry here, and I dont mean as an exporter of consumer sorted rubbish.

Can't see any logic to your reasoning. I think there is a bit of an ostrich mentality going on.... it is always difficult to admit to yourself that you have been conned, and have been totally wasting your time.
Its not like the company is eventually going to feel guilty seeing your two bins put out all dutifully sorted every time, and then decide to invest in the split truck.

KevR

Sir Liamalot wrote: »

I've seen it once in Dublin.
We don't have recycling facilities in Éire, mostly we ship it to China to be burnt as a cheap fuel.

UK are the largest importer of Irish waste who in turn export it to China to fuel their grid.
Low and behold number 2 importer is China.
Add diesel transport and bitumen fueled cargo shipping to the cost of waste, the bag you put it in and the sticker that was required :rolleyes:

Recycle vs incinerate
UK Report
Irish Report

djpbarry wrote: »

So let me get this straight….

The general waste that my council collects gets sent down the road to an incinerator here in London. But you’re telling me that rather than recycling my recyclables, or sending them to the same incinerator, they’re being sent halfway ‘round the world to burned in a Chinese incinerator?

That doesn’t make a lick of sense.

The refuse collection companies saw us coming a mile away!

We pay them take our recyclable materials. They then sell it. They get paid twice for it!

As far as I know, in the likes of Canada and Sweden you can collect plastic and glass bottles (possibly metal cans also) and you get cash for recycling them. Recyclable material is a valuable resource!! Yet we in Ireland have to pay refuse collection companies to take it off our hands (and then sell it).

Qualitymark

KevR wrote: »

As far as I know, in the likes of Canada and Sweden you can collect plastic and glass bottles (possibly metal cans also) and you get cash for recycling them. Recyclable material is a valuable resource!! Yet we in Ireland have to pay refuse collection companies to take it off our hands (and then sell it).

I heard one of the forces acting against aluminium can collection is a big soft drinks producer; have been told that they're dead against it because it would put a few cents onto the price of each can. Haven't experienced this personally, though.

I should imagine that if there were a major demand to do as the Swedes do, it'd be possible to set it up. But it's taken a good number of years even to get people to separate their green and dirty trash.

djpbarry

KevR wrote: »

We pay them take our recyclable materials. They then sell it. They get paid twice for it!

Sell it to who?

KevR wrote: »

As far as I know, in the likes of Canada and Sweden you can collect plastic and glass bottles (possibly metal cans also) and you get cash for recycling them. Recyclable material is a valuable resource!!

Not exactly. When you return the bottles, you’re essentially being refunded a deposit that you paid for the bottle when you bought whatever product it contained – you’re not being reimbursed that actual cash value of the bottle.

two wheels good

djpbarry wrote: »

Sell it to who?
Not exactly. When you return the bottles, you’re essentially being refunded a deposit that you paid for the bottle when you bought whatever product it contained – you’re not being reimbursed that actual cash value of the bottle.

Deposit-Return schemes , already in place in many European countries and US states but rejected as an option for Ireland by then Minister Phil Hogan in 2013 when a Packaging Levy was being considered because of:
- "the cost"
- "the few identifiable additional environmental benefits," ( I kid you not!)
- our recycling performance was already fabulous!
See full quotation here

Aside:
Is there any successful initiative that Phil Hogan can be credited with during his time as Env. Minister? (Apart from using the post as a convenient stepping-stone)
I'm still puzzled by recent radio adverts stating we're second in Europe for some category of recycling.

Dan Jaman

Best one I saw a few years ago was a Green / Brown / Clear bottle collection truck, which turned up, lifted all the painstakingly-sorted contents of the bins and tipped them all into the big open back that it had. It was nothing more than an open tipper.
What a sick joke.

Macha

Heh, reminds me of this Dilbert joke

But seriously, they do separate them. There's more money in recycling than throwing it into a hole in the ground.