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Recycling facts |
and some useful
information to help us recycle
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Why is recycling important?
Each household produces about one tonne of rubbish
annually. Each year in the UK households throw away over 29.1
million tonnes of waste, that's the same weight as 4.85 million
male African Elephants!
We need to increase the amount of
rubbish that is recycled because we cannot carry on burying and
burning rubbish forever.
Click here for the Recycle-More website |
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Recycling saves natural materials
Recycling is one way we can all help to ensure an
environmentally sustainable future for ourselves and
generations to come.
Recycling saves
primary material, such as wood, oil and coal. Annually, each
individual in Europe uses 50 tonnes of primary material
extracted from the earth, not including air and water. In
Europe, this equates to the extraction of 20 billion tonnes
of material from the Earth each and every year!
Find out more:
www.sita.co.uk/about-us/what-we-do/recycling/why-recycle
Recycling saves energy
Using recycled materials in the
manufacturing process uses considerably less energy than that
required for producing new products from raw materials.
Find out more:
www.recyclenow.com/why_recycling_matters/why_recycling.html
Recycling in Cornwall
The percentage of rubbish in an
average household bin that can be recycled is 60%.
The energy saved by recycling 1 aluminium drinks can is
enough to run a television for three hours.
Find out more about recycling in Cornwall:
www.recycleforcornwall.org.uk
Click here for information about recycling in North Cornwall
Click here
for the SITA website - this is the company that collects
our kerbside recycling bags and cardboard.
Re-using in Cornwall
RE:SOURCE, based in Bodmin, takes old household items then
tests, cleans, repairs and refurbishes them before selling on
in the purpose built store.
www.rezolve.org.uk
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Rubbish and
recycling
Rubbish today, compared to pre-1960s rubbish, contains more
products that don't break down when they're put in the ground.
Packaging waste makes up about a quarter of all the rubbish
put into refuse bins.
The amount of rubbish we
throw away is increasing for a number of reasons:
- new packaging materials and technology
are being developed
- lifestyle changes, for example a greater
reliance on convenience/fast food
- increasing affluence, leading to greater
consumption of goods
- increasing population
We need to increase the
amount of rubbish that is recycled because we cannot carry on
burying and burning rubbish forever.
More information
www.recycle-more.co.uk/nav/page517.aspx
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Source:
www.recycle-more.co.uk |
Help with recycling |
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glass |
Recycling
just one glass bottle saves enough energy to light a 15-watt
bulb for 24 hours!
Different
types of glass go through different recycling processes. For
example: Cookware (like pyrex dishes) melts at a much higher
temperature than container glass and must be processed
separately.
Overall
recycled glass is melted at a lower temperature than brand new
glass, which saves 30% of the energy used.
Find
out about the process of recycling glass:
www.sita.co.uk/about-us/what-we-do/recycling/recycling-process/glass |
Source:
www.sita.co.uk
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plastic bottles |
All types of plastic are recyclable but
unfortunately local authorities often find plastics recycling
very expensive.
The codes given below are usually found on plastic items; the
bottles normally used for drinks are either code 1 or code 2,
and in north Cornwall these can be recycled.
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PET |
Polyethylene
terephthalate - Fizzy drink
bottles and oven-ready meal trays. |
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HDPE |
High-density
polyethylene - Bottles for
milk and washing-up liquids. |
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PVC |
Polyvinyl
chloride - Food trays, cling
film, bottles for squash, mineral water and shampoo. |
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LDPE |
Low density
polyethylene - Carrier bags
and bin liners. |
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PP |
Polypropylene - Margarine
tubs, microwaveable meal trays. |
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PS |
Polystyrene
- Yoghurt pots, foam meat or fish trays, hamburger boxes
and egg cartons, vending cups, plastic cutlery,
protective packaging. |
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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. |
More information:
www.wasteonline.org.uk/resources/InformationSheets/Plastics.htm
www.defra.gov.uk/ENVIRONMENT/WASTE/topics/plastics.htm
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Sources:
DEFRA www.defra.gov.uk
Waste Online
www.wasteonline.org.uk
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tin cans and other metals |
 Metals are usually separated into: aluminium
(drinks cans) - non-magnetic, and steel (food tins) - magnetic
(aerosols can be made from either)
If you want to test your metals by using a
magnet,
click here get a free magnet! |
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electrical items |
Many high street retailers join a scheme
whereby customers can take their unwanted electricals to
recycling points set up around the country. Visit
www.recycle-more.co.uk to find out where your nearest
recycling point is. |
Source:
www.recycle-more.co.uk |
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mobile phones & printer cartridges |
The Recycling Appeal collects mobile phones and
printer cartridges for reuse and recycling, raising funds and
helping the environment.
Click here and find an appeal to support by recycling. |
Source:
www.recyclingappeal.com
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garden waste |
Millions of tonnes of garden waste, such as
grass cuttings, prunings and leaves, are sent to landfill
sites each year – in fact it equates to filling the Royal
Albert Hall with grass, twigs and leaves more than 70 times
over!
Yet they’re a valuable source of nutrients which could be
turned into something altogether more useful – COMPOST!
Recycle in the garden - click here! |
Source: www.recyclenow.com |
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food waste |
What food can you compost?
Vegetable peelings, salad, fruit scraps - and find out
what else can go into the compost bin, click here! |
Source: www.recyclenow.com |
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Recycling tips
Plenty of tips on how to reduce, re-use,
recycle:
click this link:
www.recycle-more.co.uk/nav/page1982.aspx
More ideas and help on
www.recycleworks.co.uk |
Source:
www.recycle-more.co.uk |
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Freecycle
This is a grassroots and entirely non-profit
movement of people
who are giving (& getting) stuff for free
in their own towns.
It's all about reuse and keeping good
stuff out of landfills. It's great for DIY, schools and the
best way to recycle!
Find out about your local Freecycle group
click here and |
Source:
www.freecycle.org |
Reuse it!
The first company in the UK to operate
fully encompassing the ethics of reusing and recycling
materials in an aim to reduce the effects and damage to the
environment that the building industry is having as a whole.
www.reuseitdontloseit.co.uk |
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