Are you recycling enough of the right stuff? What you put out for collection could be monitored this month as part of the Recycle for Hampshire campaign.

More than a quarter of household and garden waste is recycled already, but the campaign aims to double this by getting more people to make recycling part of their everyday lives.

One of the first steps is to find out how many people recycle, what they are putting out for recycling collection, how full their bins or sacks are and whether ‘contamination’ - non-recyclable material being put in the recycling bins or sacks - is a significant problem.

A team of friendly recycling advisors is currently working in six pilot areas - Basingstoke, Havant, New Forest, Portsmouth, Rushmoor and Southampton - to collect information about people’s recycling habits.

The teams will identify those people who may need more information about recycling in their area, and what can and cannot be recycled. They might then be visited by the recycling advisors as part of a ‘doorstepping’ programme during the summer, giving residents the opportunity to find out more about the practicalities of recycling and the importance of doing your bit.

Recycle for Hampshire campaign manager, Angela Bethell, said: “This isn’t about an eco-friendly Big Brother checking up on people to find out if they’re recycling - far from it. We simply need to collect some basic information about how much people are recycling at the moment. We’ll then repeat the monitoring after the doorstepping campaign is finished so we can assess its impact.

“It’s clear from our research that some people are unsure what can be put in their recycling bins or sacks, and our advisors are here to help clear up any uncertainty. Their role is to encourage even more people to recycle the right stuff, helping Hampshire reach an even higher recycling rate.”

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For further information, please contact Maggie Smith on 01962 845593

8 June 2005