From http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/south_west/6058952.stm

Magistrates have fined a man £200 after finding him guilty of putting paper in a recycling sack for bottles and cans only – breaking council rules.

What is the United Kingdom coming to. £200 fine for putting junk mail into the wrong sack (and the write up gets confused over if it was the wrong sack) as part of a VOLUNTARY recycling scheme.

Sheer madness. But it seems the council had issues with this gentleman.

Mr Reeves was served with a warning notice in April this year when he put his bins out a day early because he was going on holiday.

Then in June a green recycling bag was found outside his ground floor flat in the Mount Pleasant area of the city containing both paper and bottles and cans.

Being a bit curious about this, I had a further look and these two paragraphs intrique me (emphasis is mine):

Swansea Council enforcement officer Martin Lemon said: “There is a recycling scheme available in which paper can put into a green recycling sack and glass bottles and tins can be put into a separate sack.”

And

“My colleague informed me that he had opened a green recycling sack and that he found a piece of junk mail with Mr Reeve’s name and address.”

Now call me old fasioned but what is wrong with paper being in a green recycling sack? I hope it was a mistake with the BBC reporting or the council really are insane.