Selfsufficientish.com

I know very well that I am preaching to the converted.
After some dabbling on the Freecycle network I wondered if it could be extended.
When I go to the recycling centre/tip, I see stuff thrown away that has just outgrown its usefulness to ONE person, eg I am after some wood and someone has chucked some away. I tend to hang on until I see some in a skip etc, but it is stupid for us to go out and buy what......................you know what I mean.
I wrote to my council to see if wood, old furniture, household bits and bobs could be put into a holding bay for a couple of days. Every bit taken away doesn't go to landfill for a while.
No one liked the idea and I was made to feel like I was wasting their time.
Moan over, thanks guys

This is a big rant of mine too. I think it's disgraceful that anything should go into landfill that has any useful life in it at all.

My local Dumpit site has got a lot better in the past few months in that it has separate skips for wood, metal etc but it still leaves plenty of other stuff that someone could easily use. I've seen a skip almost full of kids toys, little slides and suchlike, I know my local mother and toddler group could use them but they couldn't be removed because of health and safety reasons. There is no sense in it at all.

Keep on bugging the council, I do. It has got to be the way forward.

Our transfer station (Recycling depot) has a man who guards the rubbish better than the crown jewels. You are not allowed to take anything out of the skips. It is so stupid.

our recycling centre (dump) they pull out useful looking stuff and sell it. - they get to keep the money Fine by me., annoys me to see that people have thrown things away like garden forks, etc

Even when they split the stuff, as ours does, there are still things which are too good to chuck.
I know the guys there take saleable gear, good on them, but it really bugs me that they are still dumping stuff in landfill that could be used.
I'm ranting now, sorry

In New Zealand they have this covered. If there is something that you think might possibly be useful it goes in a different place. The stuff is then collected and sold at Supershed. I have just bought a piano from there for the princely sum of 6 pounds!
It is great because you can buy things like microwave glass plates which you can't buy replacements for new.

Hi Possum
That's a great idea.

At our local tip, all sorts of things are separated out such as electrical items, bicycles, furniture etc. It is then sold to local scrap dealers who can do what they can with it. At least that way if there is a use for something then it can stay out of the landfill site.

Cheers
Zoe

I'm sure the Health & Safety fairies are at work here ... we can't be trusted to take stuff away, we might get a splinter and sue the council.

Additionally a my local tip the attendants see it as their domain, all the good stuff goes to them the rest to landfill ...

To be honest I could beat this topic until I got an ulcer but I won't.
Not a problem that the guys who work at the dump get first sniff, my local auction sells what they salvage. Wood, bricks, glass, all kinds of stuff costs a fortune, good stuff is being dumped. I know the H&S sweat blood over the scenario we describe.
My MP thought it was a great idea and referred it to the council...........................Dead in the water.
Must get my inhalor.....................................................

our council stores any old furniture in a big warehouse.
People who can prove they are on benefits can then go and buy it and for an extra sum, have it delivered.
The scheme was so popular that a second warehouse was opened just for baby equipment.

The prices have become a bit steep though apparently
60 quid for an old wardrobe, smelly and damp for example.

Why can't they boil down the idea to its basics? The bods are already there so you don't need additional staff.
We have an "unofficial" method here, instead of bunging it into the muck, you leave potentially usefull items this side of the fence for possible collection.
S'pose a councillor with a furniture shop, or woodyard ain't gonna want me and you picking up stuff for nothing.
I think sometimes, if the local powers that be don't take kindly to ideas off the "riff-raff" the ideas need to be dropped onto them from above, ie MP's etc. Mine was really keen but it died a death at councillors in cardigans level.
Every time we get another member of sites like this, or another shares the ethos, it is another member of the "gang"
I don't mean to sound like Citizen Smith