By Environmental Choice
Posted on July 26, 2009. Listed in:
Time was when the only reward you were likely to receive for recycling was a warm glow of pride at doing your bit for the environment - but all that may have changed if you happen to live in Maidenhead in England.
The Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead is running a pilot scheme with its waste contractor Veolia American company RecycleBank to award residents points based on how much of their waste is recycled. These points can then be redeemed for
money-off vouchers for products and services, or used to make a donation to charity on the residents' behalf.
There is a cap to prevent abuse of the scheme by residents trying to generate extra recycling to cash in on the points. Dedicated recyclers can expect to earn vouchers worth $100 a year. The scheme requires the wheelie bins of those residents involved to be fitted with a chip that identifies the bin as belonging to a particular house – named the 'bug in the bin'.
Plans to charge householders varying rates based on their waste production have been extremely unpopular in other areas where local authorities have tried to introduce them. The Maidenhead scheme turns the traditional Pay as You Throw (PAYT) concept on its head by offering rewards for good behaviour rather than penalising those who are poor at recycling. Similar schemes are in operation in 18 US states and have led to marked improvements in recycling rates in some areas.
Article originally posted in the Environmental Choice winter newsletter.
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