Environment

Residents in the London Borough of Brent could face a £1,000 fine if they fail to recycle packaging waste after compulsory recycling was introduced for householders and houses converted into flats at the beginning of August.

Brent Council said it had made the move because of the soaring cost of sending rubbish to landfill, which would have to be passed onto taxpayers if more waste was not recovered.

A spokesman said: "The landfill tax is going up by £8 a tonne every year. At the moment the total annual disposal cost is in excess of £7m. This will cost around £700,000 extra – or about 13% more – a year, if we do nothing."

Brent's green-box recycling scheme covers paper, glass, metals (such as food packaging and drink cans), plastic bottles, textiles, shoes, batteries and engine oil. Around 40% of the 80,000 householders are already using the boxes.

Council officers have been delivering leaflets to everyone affected by the scheme explaining how the system works. From the end of August, they will start visiting people who have not used their green box to encourage them to take part.

"We won’t be fining people straightaway; they’ll be given ample opportunity to take part in the scheme," the spokesman added. "We’ve been running a huge publicity campaign pushing the green box for months and the recycling rate has been increasing."

In July, the council collected 240 tonnes of recycling in green boxes each week, compared with around 150 tonnes a week on average in July 2007.