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Bin BugsThe Future of Waste Management or a Spy in our Bins |
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| home | bin bugs | pay as you throw | reaction | european directive | land fill | impact and cost | ||||
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Mixed ReactionsReactionA representative of the Local Government Association, the LGA, has been quoted in the press as saying "If you were going to go to a system of charging it is a fair assumption that you’d need to a way of doing this... a chip in the bin would be one way."But the LGA also said "Local Authorities need to let local people know, and explain why, if they are going to use them." Other comments suggest that the local councils are buying bins with chips in now because ... it was cheaper than fitting the technology later. Other reports suggest that, Local Councils are using the bugs to identify areas with low recycling rates; as these low rates would cause fines to be imposed in the future. However, reactions in the community have been mixed with some householders ripping the devices out of the bins and posted them to their town hall. It appears that households do not believe that a ‘pay as you throw’ scheme would result in a reduction in the council tax. Invasion of PrivacySome householders have reacted against the initiative; ... a bug in my bin it will go straight back to the council.Other people ... object to this clandestine invasion of privacy by the placing of what amounts to electronic surveillance in homes without consent. In Hampshire thousands of the high tech' bin bug chips have been unscrewed by council taxpayers. No Turning BackPrivacy campaigners are warning against the tagged bins, saying they had grave concerns about the increasing use of tagging technology to gather information. ... once they accept this there is no turning back. This just takes it to a new level. |
quick links DEFRA - Strategy & Legislation: Legislation/Directives - EU Landfill Directive IPPR - Institute for Public Policy Research, an independent charity, the UK’s leading independent progressive think tank. sokymat - RFID Supplier Holdfast Rubber Highway - A new use for old tyres. definitions Tag: A tag or RFID tag is a small chip that will send a signal to a receiver. There are two types of tag; active tags which have there own power and send identification signals at regular intervals and passive tags which would need to be energised with a radio signal to be interrogated. The tag is more like a car number plate than a barcode because it uniquely identifies a specific item. RFID or Radio Frequency Identification: This is the technique used to identify a specific item using a signal sent from a label attached to the item. Pay as you Throw: This is the concept of paying for rubbish disposal by weight rather than by a fixed regular fee. Landfill Directive: The Landfill Directive was generated by the European Council on 26 April 1999 it is designated number 1999/31/EC. The directive requires Landfill sites to be classified as soon as possible but classification must be completed by July 2009. Additionally, the directive sets targets for the reduction of biodegradable municipal waste disposed of in landfill sites. |