Sir, – Having just read Brian Henderson’s piece on plastic disposal, the one thing he did not mention – and it may explain SEPA (and others)’s reluctance to make any announcement – is the decision by the Chinese government to stop accepting plastic waste from the rest of the world.
This was an announcement missed by most commentators a couple of months ago. The Chinese are especially adamant that dirty plastic is unacceptable. Silage plastic is almost invariably contaminated, at the very least by the grass it sealed, while net wrap is always contaminated. What view would be taken of rinsed chemical containers?
Since the original ban on disposing of plastic on farm, there had been reports of huge quantities of unwanted material being stacked on Ministry of Defence land; then that it was being exported to China as back-load in the ships that bring us all the cookers, washing machines etc, where rumour has it that they burned it. 
So, the only difference in environmental saving between burning it on farm and burning it in China, being the amount of fuel used to move it there.
It looks as though there will be huge plastic elephant-in-the-room growing in the rest of the UK, where drum-burning is not allowed. Why would they rush to put Scotland in the same predicament?


Angus Smith
Mains of Mayen,
Rothiemay.