A local authority in the South East has spent hundreds of thousands of pounds burning contaminated recyclables in just four months.
Swale Borough Council said 181 loads collected at kerbside were rejected between April and July this year.
It estimated the extra costs associated with each of these at £2,000, meaning contamination led to expenditure of about £360,000 in that period.
If extrapolated over a full year, this would take the bill above £1 million.
The most common contaminants in residents’ recycling bins were food; textiles; sanitary waste; and black bags.
Councillor Dolley Wooster, chair of the council’s Environment and Climate Change Committee, slammed the “unacceptable” situation.
“Using your bins correctly means plenty of space for your waste before the next collection, and if you are in doubt, then place it in the green refuse bin,” she said.
“Putting food waste into your recycling means more cost to the taxpayer and less recycling in Swale.”
