Did you know some items can cause serious issues at recycling facilities, where up to 22 tonnes of contaminated recycling may need to be turned away? Food, dirty nappies, and clothes/textiles are the top three worst items that cause the most challenging, costly problems and downtime for machinery.
Contaminated recycling is expensive for local councils to sort out, and eventually the cost gets passed to the taxpayer. In addition, as future government funding will be based on recycling rates, reducing contamination makes a lot of sense. And last but not least, processing contaminated recycling is damaging for the environment.
Please follow these five easy steps and help us cancel contamination and raise recycling rates in your area.
- Some items, such as disposable nappies, ‘look recyclable’ but aren’t. Remember, humans at the recycling facility have to pick out dirty nappies by hand! Avoid putting the wrong things in your recycling bin by checking first – use our handy recycling search tool for instant advice.
- Check what you can recycle separately. In Elmbridge, Mole Valley, Surrey Heath and Woking, food waste and garden waste, small electricals, batteries and clothes/textiles recycling are collected separately – they don’t go in your main recycling bin. Except for garden waste, everything else listed above is collected weekly, allowing you to recycle little and often. Head to our website to find out more.
- No food or drink. Moisture and grease make cardboard and paper unrecyclable. Empty out liquids, dunk plastic food and drink packaging in soaking pans to remove food residue, then let it dry before recycling.
- Place all items clean, dry and loose in your recycling bin. Nothing inside bags, sacks or bin liners, please.
- Be kind to your bin collection crew! Don’t be alarmed if you see your bin crew looking inside your recycling bin – they’ve been trained to spot items that shouldn’t be in there, and tag your bin showing what you need to remove before it can be collected next time. The crew must continue on their rounds, but if you’d like to speak to someone about any aspect of the service, please visit our website.