There are areas where residents have been quietly getting on with recycling their rubbish for years.

They divide their household waste into organic matter from the kitchen and garden, paper, cans and foil and anything that cannot be recycled.

Their three bins are collected on alternate weeks and recycled according to category.

The scheme, in Wealden, is called Composting and Recycling Our Waste Now (Crown) and is the only one of its kind in Sussex.

Although an independent scheme, it has similarities to a new report just published by Robin Murray, an industrial economist and researcher at the London School of Economics, who examines methods of achieving zero waste.

In the report, Mr Murray points to innovative ways we can reuse our waste to maximise Britain's recycling levels.

He said: "Instead of accepting what our waste is and looking for ways to get rid of it, we should be asking why waste is produced and what it could become.

"As a source of pollution, rubbish needs to be controlled and hidden away but when treated as a resource it becomes valuable material.

"This report outlines for policy makers the practical measures that are needed to make the idea of a zero waste Britain into a commercial reality and an engine of green industrial change."

His ideas have already been taken up in Canberra, Australia, and have recently been launched in Bath and North-East Somerset.

Government legislation demands councils should be recycling 25 per cent of all household waste by 2005.

Wealden District Council, which runs Crown, is already at 20 per cent and will probably achieve the target by the end of the year.

Crown was first introduced in 1998 in the form of a one-year trial at Uckfield.

It spread to the south of the district, Willingdon and Wannock, then to Polegate, Hailsham, East Dean and Herstmonceux.

It covers 26,000 households out of a potential 60,000 and will serve a further 11,000 as it expands.

In the last few weeks, the people of Heathfield have been introduced to the scheme and by the end of the year Crown will return to Uckfield and its neighbour, Crowborough.

The scheme is overseen by three council-employed waste management officers.

A spokeswoman for Wealden council said: "One of the advantages is that people are made more aware of the rubbish they throw away.

"People probably didn't realise what happened to it before now."

Paul Lovick, resident and caretaker of the Town Farm estate in Hailsham, said people were behind the idea but were still trying to cope with its practicalities.

He said: "I think everyone thinks it's good in theory but on the estate there are lots of large families and that makes it more difficult to sort out all the rubbish and packaging.

"We have the normal rubbish and the green rubbish collected on different weeks.

"On normal weeks they take 35 tons of rubbish. On the green weeks they are lucky to take 11 tons."

Despite teething problems, recycling figures for Wealden have risen sharply. The same cannot be said for its more urban neighbours.

At present, Brighton and Hove achieves a recycling rate of 11 per cent.

Recent reports reveal the city council plans to push recycling levels up to 20 per cent by 2003 and 40 per cent by 2015.

A kerbside paper collection scheme is currently being tested on 11,000 households in the city and the council hopes to increase the rounds from ten to 19.

However, environmental groups are convinced 100 per cent recycling is the only way forward.

Rob Steer, co-ordinator for Eastbourne Greenpeace, said: "Zero waste is what we have been pushing for and we want the council to see it that way. The technology is there to do it but it just lacks political will.

"They have set targets of 20 per cent but we should be looking at 100 per cent.

"We only have a few years left in landfill sites. It's going to be critical in East Sussex and they are looking at introducing incinerators, which discourage recycling."

At present, the recycling rate for Eastbourne stands at 8.5 per cent.

Councillor Barry Taylor, Eastbourne Borough Council spokesman for environmental issues, insisted it would be improving.

He said: "For the future, the council recognises the need to improve its recycling rate to meet levels set by the Government.

"We recognise the excellent work Wealden District Council has put into developing their Crown scheme.

"It must be accepted, however, that it is a very expensive scheme, at a cost approaching £50 per household, per annum.

"By comparison, the council's refuse collection service is between £18 and £19 per household, although it is accepted there is likely to be a significant rise in this figure when the new contract commences in April 2003."