Pupl friction

Stuart Daniell has discovered the doorstep-recycling scheme that covers his home in Wootton Bassett does not include shredded paper.

He wants to be as eco-friendly as possible but also needs to destroy confidential documents, such as bank statements, that could fall into the wrong hands.

But contractors Hills Recycling, which collects waste on behalf of North Wiltshire District Council to be turned into paper pulp, said it had to stop collecting shredded paper after receiving complaints about it being blown onto streets as it was tipped into trucks.

Mr Daniell, of Linder Farm, said: "I am trying to be conscientious and recycle everything.

"It's great we have a scheme like this in the town but it defeats the object of having it if they won't collect things.

"But I wasn't prepared to throw confidential documents away without shredding them.

"It is so easy for someone to rifle through your rubbish and get account numbers, credit card details and other personal details and then go on and use that information.

"You can buy things over the phone with just a credit card number.

"That's why it is so important to destroy them and I invested in a shredder.

"But even if you rip it up into little bits that is the same as shredding it."

Hills manager Tim Miller said: "We have a responsibility to the public.

"Shredded paper is very light and when it is tipped into truck it blows all over the place.

"We have received strings of complaints about paper being blown into people's gardens and so we had to say we couldn't collect it.

"People can dispose of it in a paper bank or household recycling centres."

The £1 million Rubbish Raiders scheme was introduced in September by Wiltshire Waste partnership, made up of Wiltshire County Council, and the county's four district councils.

Each household was given a 55-litre box, which is emptied fortnightly.

The collectors sort the waste at the roadside.

Bhavani Vadde