Post Office rubber bands. What should we do with them?

[Robert G]

I'm sure we've all seen the many rubber bands dropped on paths and doorsteps by postmen (and postwomen?). This huge consumption and wastage of rubber bands was reported in my newspaper a few days ago. One reader wrote in saying that for two years he'd been returning them to the Post Office by popping them in their postboxes, and he appealed to everyone to do the same.

Any other suggestions?

And why don't local Councils fine the postmen for dropping litter on our streets?

[Zen]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubber_band_ball

[Robert G]

Thanks for that, Zen. I was really thinking about ways to get the Post Office to change their wasteful habit. Obviously we could pick them up and use them ourselves, but I don't need that many.

[gary baldy]

Perhaps (and this is a serious suggestion) each post deliverer should be given a limited amount of rubber bands at the start of each shift - if they dont return a substantial amount back at the end of the shift they should be heavily fined.
I mean - how hard is it to put them in your bag instead of just dropping them?

[Robert G]

So it happens all over the UK, then? Not just in Kent?

[gary baldy]

Despite my 'idea' above i must confess that the posties round here dont do it (or not as i'd noticed).
Unless of course the urchins round here collect them up and trade them in for drugs or something.
Our posties are lazy, incompetent thieves but not litterbugs.

[halfadaily]

No Robert, it happens in Oxfordshire as well. It even made the village magazine this month. Apparently the locals are concerned that birds will mistake them for worms and eat them. I shall now be on the lookout for lots of dead pigeons and crows in the area.

[kempie]

If the posties had any common sense they would deliver to the houses receiving multiple envelopes with a rubber band around the bundle. The occupant can then decide how to utilise/dispose of them at their convenience.

That is what they appear to do in our locality.

[joko]

send them to that bloke who has the biggest rubber band ball in the world - the you can feel like you're in the guiness book of records!

[Jules001]

it was actually in our local paper this week as well, which has asked people to send the bands to them for their staff to reuse but the spokeperson for the Royal Mail said ' they have reminded their staff to pick up any bands they drop ....and that the bands are biodegradable in significantly less than a year' oh so that's alright then! We are always finding them on our drive, but I just pick them up and reuse themself anyway

[Hippy]

Here in Newcastle posties now look after their rubber bands and there are few left on the pavement.

Maybe they found a way of getting them to snap back into the box after use, or maybe that's stretching a point!

[ianess]

Along the same lines as kempie's answer, a suggestion in today's local newspaper is that they could be posted through letter boxes instead of being flung away. Great idea I think.....just how often can you never find an elastic band when you need one?

[pugwash52]

The ones used in this area are now bright red, so that makes them easier to see. I have quite a few now. We could give them back at Christmas as a tip, I suppose.

[dotjhawkes]

when I was at Junior school, (I left in 1967) two girls in my class collected these rubber bands and we used to pick them up and bring them into school for them to add the the huge ball they were making, it lasted a whole year and the amount was amazing! That was just in one tiny part of this country in one year in 1967! The mind boggles as to the actual quantity dropped over time!

[spaced]

im gonna use them to tie my postman up while i torture him into not dropping them on my doorstep

[cat woman]

We couldn't understand how or where, that we kept finding our female cat playing and even eating a rubber band as my husband and I used to be very careful with them, until one day and several times later we'd come across them on our path, mystery solved! the postman was dropping them. Sounds like a good idea posting them back to the post office! xxx )):-)

[Ray The Grey]

Whoops there goes another rubber tree plant !

[BillPoster]

Royal Mail have finally decided to do something about the problem.
They have set-up a recycling department which will deal with rubber bands from across the country. You can send any rubber bands dropped by postal workers, free of charge, to: Royal Mail, Rubber Band Recycling Department, Freepost, Tomb Street, Belfast, BT1 1AA.
This is really good news.