environmentweb guide to recycling
Recycling is a fact of life for most of us these days, with local authorities carrying out recycling collections as well as regular rubbish collections - often on alternating weeks. But these collections don't take everything, and there's often more we can do with just a little more effort. It's also worth reminding ourselves why recycling is worth all the hassle. So...
Contents
Why recycle?
What can be recycled?
Compost
Is recycling the best option?
Useful links
Why recycle?
The truth is there's a whole bunch of reasons why recycling is worthwhile. To start with the most obvious:
1. It reduces landfill. Fairly straightforward, but also very important. The less rubbish we throw away, the less ends up going in to big holes in the ground. The negatives of landfill could have an article to themselves, but include groundwater pollution, reductions in property prices in you're unfortunate enough to live near one and a significant contribution to climate change through the release of greenhouse gases, in particular methane. All in all, not something we want more of.
2. It saves resources. A similarly obvious point, but again with important implications. Everything time something's recycled it means that same thing doesn't have to be made from fresh materials. Recycle one ton of paper and it can save around 17 trees! Recycle plastics and we need less oil to make more (potentially very important over the next 50 years..)
3. It saves energy. A less obvious point, but vital to making recycling viable. In many cases it takes less energy to use recycled materials than it does to create new ones. Not only does this reduce energy consumption, giving all the benefits that come with that, it also means recycled materials can be cheaper than brand new ones - a very good reason for people, and businesses, to use them. It also often uses less water, reducing both water and air pollution.
4. It's economically sound. As I mentioned above, recycled materials are cheaper to manufacture than new ones. Recycling is also a source of employment. It's hard to work out the exact number of people employed by recycling in the UK, but estimates suggest it may be over 17,000 (www.wasteonline.org).
What can be recycled?
Around two thirds of household waste can be recycled, but sometimes it's hard to know exactly what can and what can't. This isn't helped by the fact that different recycling centers can deal with different materials, and the recycling collected by local authorities will often be influenced by what their recycling centers can handle. One point that's worth making is that items usually need to be clean to be recycled, so wash out your bottles and cans before throwing them away, and things like greasy foil will have to go in the bin.
Plastics
There are many different types of plastics and some are easier to recycle than others. The type of plastic a product is made from can be identified by a recycling logo with a number in it found somewhere on it. These are summarised in the table below:
|
PET |
Polyethylene terephthalate - Fizzy drink bottles and oven-ready meal trays. |
|
HDPE |
High-density polyethylene - Bottles for milk and washing-up liquids. |
|
PVC |
Polyvinyl chloride - Food trays, cling film, bottles for squash, mineral water and shampoo.
|
|
LDPE |
Low density polyethylene - Carrier bags and bin liners. |
|
PP |
Polypropylene - Margarine tubs, microwaveable meal trays. |
|
PS |
Polystyrene - Yoghurt pots, foam meat or fish trays, hamburger boxes and egg cartons, vending cups, plastic cutlery, protective packaging for electronic goods and toys. |
|
OTHER |
Any other plastics that do not fall into any of the above categories. - An example is melamine, which is often used in plastic plates and cups. |
Often local authorities will specify certain items, such as plastic bottles, that they will recycle. However you may find that your local recycling bank or recycling center will take a much wider variety of items, as long as they are one of the types of plastic they collect. Also be aware that a product may contain several different plastics, for example bottle lids are usually made of different plastic to the bottle themselves, and so will need to be removed for recycling.
Paper and card
Paper and cardboard are great as nearly all products can be recycled. It;s often necessary to sort out different types though, so split paper from card and plain paper, coloured paper and glossy leaflets and magazines may need to be dealt with separately.
Tins and foil
Most councils will collect tins for recycling. The main thing to remember here is the point I made above, that they need to be clean so make sure you wash them out before putting them in the recycling bin.
Glass
Again glass is usually collected by your local council who will take any colour. If you take it to the recycling bank on the other hand there'll usually be separate banks for different coloured glass. Once again make sure you rinse it our first.
Tetra packs (e.g. juice cartons)
Tetra packs and similar cartons are very common, but much harder to find a recycling point for. They aren't usually covered by the regular recycling collections, but if you hunt around recycling points for them do exist. If you have a local Asda store they often seem to have them in their recycling banks.
Batteries
Like tetra packs, batteries aren't usually covered by council recycling collections, but because of the number of harmful chemicals they contain you should definitely avoid putting them in to landfill. A number of stores have collection points for used batteries and it's also possible to get hold of envelopes to put them in which can then be sent off - I know they used to be available from Sainsbury's, but I haven't seen any recently.
There are many other products which can be recycled, but these are probably the ones you'll come across most often. If you want to know more about recycling a particular item I'd recommend checking out Waste Online which provides detailed recycling information on almost anything you can think of.
Compost
Composting is something people often forget about when they talk about recycling, but really it's one of the only forms of recycling you can do yourself at home and reap the benefits! If you do any sort of gardening, whether it's a few flower beds, an allotment or sprawling gardens then you're sure to be able to find a good use for compost, putting all of your vegetable waste to good use. If you don't compost yourself then maybe you know someone who does and who'd appreciate additional materials!
If you don't compost at the moment but want to start it's worth checking if your council offers subsidised recycling bins to save yourself a few pounds. If not you can always build your own. Local authorities often also do garden waste collections (though these generally don't take household vegetable waste) or you can take garden waste to your local recycling center.
Is recycling the best option?
You've probably seen or heard the phrase 'Reduce, Reuse, Recycle' - quite possible on the side of your local recycling collection lorry. This is the hierarchy we should consider when dealing with waste, and in that order.
While recycling has many benefits over just throwing things away, it's even better to avoid getting to that stage in the first place wherever possible.
Reduce - This is the stage that probably requires the most thought. What can you do to reduce the amount of waste you create? Do you buy products with a lot of packaging, where maybe you could pick ones with less? Are you using plastic carrier bags when you could be using reusable ones? Do you use disposable products when you could buy more durable ones (nappies are a great example)? You'll probably be surprised how much you can do without.
Reuse - So you've got something and you don't want it any more. Are you sure? Or can someone else use it? There's no end to the uses empty tubs, jars and bottles can be put to. But in many cases the old saying holds true, 'one man's rubbish is another mans treasure'. Websites such as freecycle provide a great way to get rid of old unwanted items that are still in a usable condition, from kitchenwares to the kitchen sink! And never forget the humble charity shop, a great way to reuse old clothes, books and other items and help a good cause at the same time. Even ebay - you never know what someone may take a fancy to, and you can make some cash at the same time. There are also an increasing number of door to door charity collections for clothing and unwanted items, although the charitable status of many is questionable so the charity shops may be a safer bet if you want to be sure on that front.
Then, finally, if there's no more use for it, it might just be time to put it in the recycling bin. And hopefully whatever it comes back as next time will go through it all again.
Useful recycling links
If you want to find out more about recycling, here's a few websites that are worth looking at.
Waste Online - The Waste Online website is managed by the environmental charity Waste Watch and contains a wealth of information on what, where and how you can recycle.
Directgov - This link will take you to directgov's 'find out about recycling' page which will help you identify what recycling schemes operate where you are. Alternatively by going to the home page at www.direct.gov.uk and searching recycling you can find out even more useful facts.
Freecycle - The Freecycle website will help you to find a local Freecycle group - a network of people who offer up unwanted items to anyone who can find a use for them. So whether you're looking to get rid of some bits and pieces or looking for a new sofa it's worth checking out.
