Cut down on packaging

Sir, - I used to have a garden: now I have a bin store.

I exaggerate, but I do now have four large bins and one small bin to find space for in my not very big garden.

And yesterday I received a calendar from the council telling me which bins I need to have out on the street for collection on which days, which works out an average of three bin days per week.

To sort everything into the right bin, remember which days to have which one out on the street, and have them out on the street by 7.30am is quite a task.

And that is not to mention the cost to the council of this multitude of bins, and of collecting them, and dealing with the contents, which ultimately must be paid for by the council tax payers.

Presumably, this same exercise is being carried out in every city and town in the country: a mammoth expenditure of energy and cost.

I am not blaming the council for this. I am very aware that the planet is being overwhelmed with rubbish, and am more than happy to do my bit but surely it would make more sense to cut down the amount of rubbish at source.

I am no expert in such matters, but clearly a huge amount of rubbish is generated from excess packaging. Surely government measures to make companies reduce this would be a sensible step. Perhaps we could have a tax on packaging.

Maybe more of an emphasis on curbing the throwaway culture would help.

The casual use of bags handed out in shops has now been very successfully curbed, but the trend for more and more shopping being done online has, I’m sure, more than negated this benefit, with every item needing to be securely, often excessively, packaged.

I don’t know the solutions, but it seems clear to me that the current situation is just crazy.

Les Mackay. 5 Carmichael Gardens, Dundee.