I’VE become really rather good at recycling and I feel confident in standing proud as our household’s head eco-honcho.

Everything that can be recycled ends up in my well-preserved blue bin, while my larger black bin is always filled to the brim with household rubbish.

And perhaps some grass. And a few twigs from lopped bushes and trees. And maybe the odd leaf.

OK, I confess that I am often guilty of putting my garden waste into my black bin and while the Borough of Poole have yet to wield the power to make me change my ways, their latest plans could mean a very different approach to my green thinking.

But charging for recycling garden waste is a bold move and it’s one that’s motivated both by cost and the need to improve recycling performance.

I figure I’m a fairly typical chap and that there are plenty of people like me who have been educated about recycling and who do their bit, if not zealously then at least in a public-spirited way.

But I have a small garden, most of which is covered in decking. It’s unlikely I’ll fill a garden waste bin every couple of months, let alone every fortnight, but I’ll doubtless still have to pay the same as everyone else.

Education and persuasion will convince us, says the council. I think I’m going to need a bit more persuading.