Dumped: 230,000 tons of rubbish we sort for recycling that ends up clogging landfill sites More than 230,000 tons of waste sent for recycling by householders is being dumped in landfill sites every year, it is claimed.
Councils say the waste is ' contaminated', and it is cheaper to bury it than to remove the unwanted elements.
However, the policy risks bringing the entire council recycling regime into disrepute.
Details are revealed by consumer group Which?, which says that both councils and householders must make greater efforts to ensure that waste sent for recycling is properly sorted.
The consumer group says current failures mean that councils are having to spend �12million a year in England alone to dispose of waste which should be recycled.
The claims have triggered a fierce response from the Local Government Association, which said the savings generated by implementing a full sorting regime would be minimal.
This is predicated on the idea that recycling is actually a good idea.
You might want to check out the wonderful Penn and Teller Bullshit series on Recycling -- especially the third sequence where the whole "running out of landfill" space is completely torpedoed.