£1,000 fines for failing to recycle

Residents face fines of up to £1,000 if they fail to recycle their household waste.

Under a plan being introduced by Barnet council next week, more than 25,000 homes will be required to take part in the UK's first compulsory recycling scheme.

Residents will have to separate items such as newspapers, magazines, bottles, cans, foil and shoes from their general rubbish and place them in a black plastic box outside their home.

The Conservative-controlled borough has set itself a target of doubling the amount it recycles from 15 to 30 per cent over the next two years.

Residents who fail to comply will receive warnings from council " recycling assistants", who will encourage them to participate. If they refuse, council leaders have threatened to take them to court for breaching the Environmental Protection Act. This could result in fines of up to £1,000.

A leaflet being sent out states: " Residents who persistently and deliberately fail to recycle will receive warnings and formal notices. As a last resort the council may prosecute the most persistent offenders."

Barnet is one of the best local authorities in England for the amount it recycles from free weekly doorstep collections. But the UK is one of the worst performers in Europe, recycling only 12 per cent of its waste.

The Government has set a national target for 2005 of recycling 25 per cent of the 28 million tonnes of household waste produced each year. This target rises to 30 per cent by 2010.

Barnet's scheme will begin next Thursday in four wards - Totteridge, East Barnet, Oakleigh and Brunswick Park - but will be rolled out across the rest of the borough from October.

The wards were chosen because they have the highest level of participation in the black box scheme run by the council.

Brian Coleman, Barnet's cabinet member for the environment, said: "Our record on recycling waste is good but I realise there is more that can be done to stem the tide of household waste.

"Compulsory recycling is a radical and innovative approach which will help us reach the challenging targets. We want to create a cleaner, greener borough and I am confident that residents will want to do their bit.

"If the scheme is a success it is sure to be copied by others across the country."