How is it recycled
- cans
- glass
- plastic bottles
Overview
Many of the food and drink products we buy are packaged in cans made from either aluminium or steel and both of these materials can be recycled after we have finished with them to make either new cans or other products.
Overview
Domestic waste glass (known as cullet) is easy to recycle. The UK currently recycles around 50% of container glass (like bottles and jars) and whilst this figure has doubled over the last five years it still lags behind other countries i.e.both Switzerland and Finland recycle more than 90% of their glass.
Glass is usually collected in 'bottle banks' at recycling centres or as part of our kerbside collection. However there is still more we can all do, such as remembering to recycle our clear jars (pasta sauce jars and jam jars) which are often forgotten.
The UK business sector still has a lot of work to do to recycle glass – bars, restaurants and pubs currently throw away 600,000 tonnes of glass every year, with most of it ending up in landfill.
Overview
Councils use different methods of collecting your recycling. There are kerbside ‘sort’ schemes where recyclables are sorted into their respective materials on the lorry at the kerbside; and co-mingled collections where all your recyclables are put into one compartment on the lorry before being taken to a Materials Recycling Facility (MRF) and sorted. This section is looking at co-mingled collections.
At the MRF, all the mixed recycling is sorted and separated into different types of materials by hand or machine (or both) before being sent to manufacturers who make it into new products. The machinery, processes and the materials that each MRF can accept do vary, so the video explains the basic principal of the process.
Once materials have been sorted, recycled materials become valuable commodities in the worldwide market.
Overview
Plastic is one of the most popular and useful materials of modern times. However, its popularity is part of the problem: we now use about 20 times more plastic than we did 50 years ago. However, we can optimise the lifespan of plastics by reusing and recycling items as many times as possible.
Community Forums
People living or working near the Javelin Park site are invited to take part in a series of community forums being organised by the county council.
The forums will have the opportunity to discuss the alternatives to landfill and discuss any specific issues or concerns people might have.
If you’re interested in joining a community forum please email realrubbish@gloucestershire.gov.uk or telephone 01452 42 7248 to register by 26th February 2010. Places will be limited.
Click here to find out more about previous consultation.