Everyone produces waste. In fact, in the UK household waste alone amounts to about 30 million tonnes annually, and unfortunately this is growing. And while waste cannot be eliminated, we can reduce its environmental impact by preventing waste wherever possible by Recycling at Home, and making more sustainable use of the waste that is produced. The latest statistics suggest that we are recycling approximately 23% of our household waste on average although this differs greatly in different regions.
So how can you help by Recycling at Home:
Paper - Paper and packaging make up huge proportions of most municipal and commercial waste streams and therefore the paper industry is the UK's largest recycler. However, almost 5 million tonnes of waste paper are still sent to landfill or incineration each year. This means that the industry has to import fibre to meet its needs, which does not make environmental or economic sense. Many councils now collect waste paper from homes but if you do not have this facility for Recycling at Home please take your paper to the nearest paper bank which you can find at the bank locator above.
Glass - Annually, total glass use in the UK is estimated at around 3.6 million tonnes. Using present technology the UK glass industry has the capacity to recycle over one million tonnes of glass each year and this, coupled with the materials unique ability to be infinitely recycled without compromising its quality, creates a compelling case for the recycling of glass. Despite this, glass makes up around 7% of the average household dustbin and in 2001 over 2.5 million tonnes of this material was landfilled. Find your nearest bottle bank using the link above.
Printer Cartridges - Printer Cartridges - More than 1.1 billion inkjet cartridges are used annually around the world which if laid end to end would be 129 times as long as the Great Wall of China. Industry analysts estimate a spent cartridge can be reused or remanufactured between 3 to 7 times - every cartridge remanufactured is one fewer going directly to the landfill. To recycle your cartridges go to www.inkcycle.co.uk or www.empty-cartridges.co.uk who pay for all the collection costs and also reward you with cash for each empty inkjet cartridge that they receive.
Plastic Bottles - Plastic bottles are made from oil - a fossil fuel that will one day run out. It is important to make use of materials like plastics that can be recycled and re-used, rather than continually exploiting the fossil fuels used to make them in the first place. In Britain we throw away about 455,000 tonnes of plastic bottles every year - that's around 9.1 billion bottles! Many of these end up in landfill where, because plastic bottles are very light but very bulky, they take up lots of space. You can find some excellent information on recycling plastic at Waste Online
Composting - Composting - Home composting is at the top of the waste hierarchy for composting because it cuts down on transport costs and uses the waste where it is generated with very little environmental impact. Although many local authorities promote the sale of home composting bins, the accompanying instructions are often minimal, which leads to new composters having problems or unrealistic expectations and becoming disillusioned. An excellent website on home composting is Recyclenow
Batteries, Metals, Liquids & Chemicals and Electrical Goods - can all be recycled and you can find your nearest recycling centre by clicking on the bank locator.
For Recycling at Home use the Recycle Bank Locator to find your nearest recycling facilities at www.recycle-more.co.uk
For further information on Recycling click on the links below
