Could you give me your take on this?

[Millie]

http://www.westwiltshire.gov.uk/index/e ... contam.htm

The council have recently changed what can go into the green bin, as apparently it was too successful so I found this list today, and rang to ask them if I can put the waste from my rabbits in afterall. Spent 11 minutes on the phone to clueless who decided that once the rabbit had been to the toilet on the sawdust it was no longer untreated, and therefore it had to go in with household rubbish. I tried to explain the difference between treated and untreated wood. She then got clueless colleague to confirm that rabbit sawdust comes under pet litter.........and I dont think it does!

My green bin sits for months with nothing in it, if I could use it for the sawdust again, I would be well chuffed :)

Whats your take on the webpage above?

[Annpan]

Well at least you get a recycle uplift... I don't...and the councils wonder why they don't meet recycling targets

Too successful!!! what is that supposed to mean? it doesn't make any sense.

Although I think I have to agree that pet litter would defo. included droppings of any type...sorry.

[Karen_D]

It always amazes me that they only want the stuff you could compost yourself anyway. That stuff isn't rubbish it's useful!

[red]

cant put in kitchen waste? blimey - hope my council does nto start that.. whats the point after that..... I mean there are plenty that dont have room for a compost heap - thats the whole idea.. that the council does a bit compost heap instead.

makes me realise my council is not so bad

my recycling bin only ends up with palnts i dont want t o increase about the place.. like J artichoke roots, bind weed... etc

[Helsbells]

This may sound like a stupid question! But I have been putting bind weed into my compost bin totally unaware that there was anything wrong!! So is it wrong? and what will happen?

[red]

its probably fine. as it should compost down in that nice heat inside your composter. just i hate bind weed and get paranoid..

[the.fee.fairy]

I had the same problem with my local council and the cleaning s from my rat cage.

I'd been putting the cleanings in the compost for a year or so before the leaflet came through the door and my mum started wondering whether she should be eating the potatoes from the veg patch after all.

I spoke to a bloke who only had a half a clue. I had to explain to him the difference between cat litter and rat cleanings - the cat litter contains more pathogens because the cat is a meateater. the same goes for dogs.

I also had to explain that since my rat ate veggie food (with the occasional bone/bit of tuna/bit of mince) and it slept on wood shavings, there wasn't muich difference between the cleaning s and horse manure.

Then he understood and went to research it a bit.

See if they understand by explaining to them that rabbit cleanings are pretty much the same as horse manure - just in a smaller quantity.

[madanna]

yes our council also state that vegatarian pets waste can go into brown bins but meat eaters cannot

Maybe try challenging them again see what u progress u can make if any

Anna x

[Millie]

They said they had to refuse cardboard, veggie pet waste, kitchen waste etc because too many people took it up and it messed up the compost, though now they seem to be claiming its to do with gov guidelines

I used recyclable cat litter for the cats, which they used to take as long as you had removed all traces of poop. My mum did start putting the cat litter (wood pellets) and the bunny sawdust into her home compost bin, but it completely wrecked the compost, so shes abandoned that for the time being.

Anna, I would challenge them again but todays phonecall left me wanting to throw the monitor out the window (cos she wouldnt address the query until she found the exact same page, but wouldnt listen to my directions).

[the.fee.fairy]

I used to use Biocatelet paper based cat litter for the ratties, and that went into the compost. The woodflakes take forever to break down though

[Tinyclanger]

The government guidelines that the council are probably refering to are "the animal biproducts regs". These were brought in after the foot and mouth epidemic and they are valid.
If your council are composting the organic material that they collect by "windrow composting" which takes place in the open then they are not allowed to have any meat, cooked food or animal biproducts in the material being composted.This is because the material is open to birds and animals which would be attracted to the composting site by such materials and may spread diseaese if there was any present. Also windrow composting is not regulated or tested by the state vetinary service. Adding cardboard to the mix causes all sorts of problems no least of which being that the resulting compost is of poor quality and contains more contamination then compost made without cardboard. Low quality compost is much more expensive to make as there is very little market for it and the price obtained is low.

If however the council were to collect foodwaste including meat etc either seperately or with the garden waste then the material would be subject to the animal biproducts regs and the wholel lot would have to go for Invessel Composting. This process is controled and certified by the state vetinary service. The material is composted in enclosed vessels - birds and animals are unable to gain access. The material must reach temperatures of over 60 degrees c for 2 consecutive adays in 2 consecutive weeks - the heat and time kill off any pathogens.The temperature usually actually gets up to about 80 - the plant in Swansea regularly gets to 84 and the one in Somerset 76.

I'd say your vegitarian pet litter could go into the 2nd process but not the 1st. BTW cat litter would be able to go in either.

Ta,
Tiny.[/i]

[Karen_D]

its probably fine. as it should compost down in that nice heat inside your composter. just i hate bind weed and get paranoid..

The thing to do with bindweed is to drown it first. We make "weed soup" (for the garden, not to eat!), which is a good liquid feed, from roots like bindweed and dock.