I write following a trip to the Malvern tip at Monday lunchtime.

I had around 1/2 of a cubic metre of cardboard I'd been collecting over the last three months or so. I also advertise my wife's business on the side of my 4x4 - which before the witch hunt starts, is frequently powered by eco friendly vegetable-based diesel despite tax on this fuel being levied at the same rate as mineral diesel by our say one thing - do another' government.

One of the attendants strolled over and told me (with a hint of relish, I might add) that I couldn't dispose of my cardboard there as it was commercial waste and I'd have to take it to Throckmorton. The outer box, which I'd packed all of the other cardboard in was a large importers shoe carton and some of the cardboard inside the box was also shoe carton cardboard. To be honest, I had never considered it commercial' waste due to the small quantities.

Anyway, to cut a long story short, we discussed the matter in a lively manner and I left with my cardboard, so far unable to do the green thing and recycle it. When I got home, I rang my wife and told her the story. She rang Throckmorton and was told they charge £38 per ton. Not too bad, but get this, they DON'T recycle it!

So, our wonderfully green local council want me to take the cardboard that I've been happily recycling for years on an unnecessary 25-mile round trip, to NOT recycle it, and pay it for the pleasure, despite the fact we already pay higher than average Council Tax for poorer than average services!

Does this strike anyone else as somewhat less than green'?

How can councils make any claims about being eco-friendly when this level of idiocy is rife?

A G McNally, Malvern