REFUSE lorries owned by the council’s waste provider Ubico Ltd are now carrying new recycling slogans.

The two new messages read: Don’t WASTE your money! The waste in this lorry is all going to landfill. Every year Cotswold District residents pay £1.25 MILLION to bury waste. Please stop throwing your money away by recycling more, and: Thanks a £MILLION; Recycling and composting by Cotswold District residents saves almost £1.7 million on landfill tax costs every year. Thanks for recycling.

This is one of a number of measures which is being undertaken by the council to encourage more reduction, reuse and recycling of waste items. The Cabinet Member for the Environment, Cllr Sue Coakley, explains:

“We are very grateful to our residents because they recycle nearly 60 per cent of all waste in the District - the best performance in Gloucestershire. Nevertheless, like many local authorities, we have seen a slight downturn in recycling over the last couple of years, and we want to reverse this trend by encouraging greater awareness of the need to cut down on landfill.

“The exorbitant cost of burying waste is obviously a major concern, but we are also reminding the public that landfill is a finite resource and recycling, reusing and reducing waste is the best long-term solution for everyone. Even modest steps forward – like each household recycling more clothing items and a few more cans each week - can have a telling effect overall. ”