Talks about recycling and waste management are everywhere right now leading up to the United Nations summit on climate change in Copenhagen. The December summit hopes to unite countries around the world and set an agenda for how to handle climate change. Politicians like Hilary Benn have been making the rounds supporting policy, while protestors have taken to chimneystacks and rooftops. Local councils are also getting in on the action, each trying to find a new and innovative way to increase recycling and reduce waste. If pleading and protesting won’t work some have even turned to good old fashioned bribery.
Halton has launched the first recycling voucher campaign in the north of England as a way to try and promote increased recycling. The more waste residents put in their blue recycling bins the more points they can earn. These points can then be redeemed for vouchers to local restaurants, shops, and outlets. A wide variety of retailers have jumped on board with the scheme, more than one hundred in all, including well known names like Cineworld, Costcutter, and British Gas, as well as local businesses like BeOffee and Lullaby NuseryWare. Organizers of the plan say that the average household could save over one hundred and thirty pounds a year just by recycling.
The Halton Council, along with RecycleBank has launched the pilot program in seven areas covering ten thousand homes. RecycleBank spokesmen said that similar programs have had success in the past and that recycling numbers have increased anywhere from thirty to eighty percent. RecycleBank has found that financial incentives are a great way to get people to do their part.
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