RE THE item on page 7 of the 31 March Andover Advertiser: I was also baffled by the idea that “a change in buying habits” was leading to lower recycling.

Does this mean that people are buying goods that cannot be recycled, or that they are buying goods with a longer life so that disposal is spread over a longer time period?

And if people are buying less because they have less money then there will be less to throw away so less to recycle. Are people choosing not to recycle because it’s too much of a chore to separate all the different materials?

The idea of measuring waste by weight also seems daft. If goods are packed in polystyrene or bubble wrap, which cannot be recycled, instead of cardboard or paper, which can, then recycling rates will obviously go down, but the consumer has no choice in the matter.

And what about goods disposed of via eBay, or donated to charities for resale? These are all valid ways of ‘recycling’ useable items, but they don’t go through TVBC channels so aren’t measured.

The story seems to raise more questions than it answers.

Why don’t these changes affect the rest of the country?

Mike Dean, Clatford Manor, Upper Clatford