I am proud of the success of the recycling and waste collection system introduced by the previous LibDem administration. However, I do understand the real, practical problems faced by residents living in households, especially maisonettes and apartments, where there is simply not enough suitable storage space for the bins and containers.

On Wednesday 4^th June I am visiting the City Works Depot at Cowley Marsh to learn more about the operations and meet some of the staff who work hard to provide an efficient service and to help raise recycling rates.

Coincidently this week (2-6 June) 2008) is also Recycle Week, which is being supported by the Council. It is about highlighting the extra things we can all easily do to recycle more and increase the impact of our recycling efforts.

The Council will be setting up display booths where you can go and visit to get ideas on how to recycle. They will be at Gloucester Green on Wednesday and Thursday (June 4 and 5), and the Town Hall on Friday, June 6.

A series of ‘hotspots’ in the home of ‘forgotten’ items of recyclable household waste have been highlighted. It seems that frequently forgotten items include: plastic shampoo and toiletry bottles (32%); plastic cleaning product bottles, such as bleach or disinfectants (31%); and glass jars, such as those for cooking sauces (20%).

Apparently, although nearly two thirds (62%) of consumers said that they always remembered to recycle items from their kitchen, this falls dramatically to around a third for waste found in other areas of the home, such as the bathroom (36%) and bedroom (34%).

Also, if every household in Oxford recycled just one more plastic bottle each week, it is claimed we’d save 356 tonnes of CO2, the same as taking 113 cars off the road. A staggering thought!

To find out more about what’s happening during Recycle Week or for further information about recycling, visit the City Council’s Recycle Week page.

Frankly, I am still learning about the details of the system and some of the challenges for certain areas in Carfax Ward. Please do contact me if there is anything I need to know about and help with.

Today is the anniversary of my first month since my election as the LibDem Councillor for Carfax Ward. It has been a pretty hectic but incredibly satisfying experience so far. Today is my first attempt at getting into the 21st century and creating my own personal web page. My plan is that gradually it will develop into a useful resource for all residents in the ward.

Thank you all (whether supporters or not) for electing me a month ago. I promise I will do my best to serve you all in what ever way I can. So please do contact me by phone, email, post or even by clicking on the ‘How You Can Help’ or ‘Report a Problem’ link below. I will do my best to reply as soon as possible.