WAVERLEY'S alternate waste collection scheme has been met with criticism as one Farnham councillor shunned the new approach. Dr Penny Marriott, an Independent Waverley councillor, has labelled the council's scheme to limit rubbish collection as "a burden" on members of the public and "unhygienic" in the run up to summer. The new schedule, the first phase of which was introduced two weeks ago, relies on a fortnightly collection of household waste in order to encourage residents to recycle more. "The new schedule is based on the assumption that it is necessary to limit rubbish collection in order to force people to recycle a larger proportion of their rubbish and I am concerned about this approach," said Dr Marriott. "Whichever way you look at it, this is a 50 per cent reduction in service. Added to this we now have to decide which waste is recyclable or not. This places quite a burden on members of the public. I also think the system could be unhygienic in the summer when we will have rubbish in our bins outside for two weeks." One solution to the problem, offered by Dr Marriott, is that Waverley should adopt a Spanish approach to waste collection. "I went on holiday to Majorca recently and they have frequent collections of their rubbish at four in the morning before anyone gets up and there are three separate bins for plastics. Life is made simpler by this," she said. However, Victor Scrivens, portfolio holder for environment and leisure, defended the council's waste scheme, saying: "As a way of collecting waste, it has been successfully introduced by more than 100 councils in the UK, and has proven to increase participation in recycling. "Councillor Marriott has proposed her ideal waste collection system with more frequent collections. However, there is no evidence that more frequent collections will increase waste, but it will mean council taxes going up." Mr Scrivens went on to point out that due to increasing pressure from both Brussels and the government, a solution to the problem of recycling was necessary. "As a council we had to accept that action needed to be taken, which is why the council unanimously agreed to the new system," he said. Dr Marriott, however, claimed the council had halved its waste collection bill - a financial decision that she felt should be reconsidered. "Personally I think more money should be spent on this. The system should be reviewed and a different way of doing things should be thought of. "I recycle almost everything and I have a compost heap in the garden but this system will be a hardship. I don't think people would mind paying a little bit more to get a better service."
