Upgrade the Botany Bay Council Recycling System

Dear Mayor Keneally,

We are writing to petition you to please upgrade the City of Botany Bay's recycling system.

Recycling is important to the residents of the City of Botany Bay. 

         We would like to see landfill and deforrestation be kept at a minimum, and also for our carbon footprint to be smaller.

Sadly, Botany Bay had the lowest rate of recycling of all the Sydney councils

        in the year 2010-2011, according to the Office of Environment and Heritage.  We would like to think that this does not reflect the residents’

        general attitude to recycling, but rather the substandard recycling system. 

Currently, we have two crates for recycling – a blue one for paper and a yellow one for plastic and glass.  

There is nothing provided for green waste

       as per the council, residents are expected to sort green waste into two piles - twigs and branches tied up together, and all other green

       waste to be placed into a plastic bag.

We propose that a new system be put in place: a wheelie bin each for general waste, recyclables, and green waste.

      This is the set up provided by a number of local councils, including the City of Sydney.

There are a number of reasons why this would encourage rates of recycling, such as:

    - increased space for more recycling - crate capacity is very small compared to a wheelie bin

    - increased convenience - the green waste system is cumbersome and acts as a deterrent to recycling (residents are tempted to dispose

      their green waste in their general waste); separating paper from plastic and glass is similarly cumbersome

   - improved hygiene: open crates which are likely to become dirty, lie out in the open, tempting flies, cockroaches, and other vermin; liquid

    and other material from crates can fall through the crate holes onto the person carrying the crate

   - more secure waste storage and decreased litter of surrounding areas - light objects placed in crates e.g. pieces of paper, takeaway

     containers blow out of the crates onto lawns and pavements on windy days

   - decreased lifting strain - bins only require pushing and pulling, which is considerate of our increasingly ageing community and those

     who suffer from chronic back pain

   - increased privacy of recyclable materials

We hope that you appreciate our concerns and work with the council to respond to them in a timely manner.