REGARDING your interesting article on the "rubbish row" (LET, November 10), just what are the refuse disposal operatives after?

Self-propelled, self-emptying, self-returning-to-gather wheelie-bins?

The matter of the extra bags being left adjacent to bins is easily rectified. Issue each lorry with a "sack truck" for toting them to the vehicle.

Obviously, this would be much cheaper than each crew calling in to base and so requiring someone else to come out and assess the site.

The business of bin lids being at no more than an angle of 45 degrees brings back recent memories of Brussels' diktats concerning bananas and strawberries being the wrong shape.

Should one or more bins not have a lid how would the "bin police" be able to guess whether or not the 45-degree limit was being breached?

When all is said and done, the cleansing department is employed to cleanse (or have I been misinformed?) and not to be degree holders in quantum mathematics!

Imagine the impact it would have if 90 per cent of households went back to burning solid fuel and metal bins (minus wheels) were still in use. Only 10 per cent of households would then have their bins emptied, provided, of course, it wasn't dirty, overfull, facing the wrong way around and, lastly, didn't have it's lid open by more than 45 degrees.

Common sense seems to have gone out of the window while would-be mandarins are in abundance.

Why don't the council just ask everyone to take a "personal day" when it is "bin day," so that they can empty their own bin into the lorry whilst being supervised by the cleansing crews?

H ROBINSON (Mr), Woodside Road, Accrington.