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Waste recycling is a very hot topic in the UK!  Realisation is finally dawning that our land fill sites are now in short supply, and awareness is spreading that we can realistically recycle more than 60% of our waste.  Domestically and at work we can all "do our bit" to make this happen.  Most local authorities now collect segregated waste; you may well already have separate bins at home to collect different types of material.  Local authorities also usually provide facilities in local areas where you can take any types of waste which are not collected from your home.  Recycling needn't be complicated or even time consuming; it is very simple to separate your rubbish as you go along once you understand what can and cannot be recycled.  And any trips to your local recycling centre can be combined with other journeys that you make, especially as many supermarkets now have recycling facilities on their carparks.  A large number of product types are suitable for recycling, including paper and card; glass; plastics; aluminium; steel; clothing and textiles; wood; electrical and electronic equipment; packaging; garden waste and many more.

Recycling Explained
Put simply, recycling processes used products to make new material to make new products.  Most importantly, recycling reduces the demand for raw materials from the earth, absolutely essential as most resources cannot be replaced.  If we continue to use them at the current crazy rate then they will run out.  Other worldwide environmental elements are reduced by recycling too, such as mining, quarrying and logging.  It also reduces the processing and transportation involved in "new" production, and recycling often creates less pollution and uses less energy.  To give you an idea of this, plastic bags produced from recycled plastic reduces energy consumption by two thirds when compared to bags made from virgin material.  Once we understand the need for recycling then we can all strive to find ways to make it work; we can all take responsibility for the waste we create.

The Recycling Symbol
You will probably have seen the most common recycling symbol, the mobius loop, on products that you buy.  This loop generally means that the product is recyclable or has some recycled element in it.  Just because it has a recyclable symbol on it, does not necessarily mean that the product will be recycled though.  In theory many products can be recycled, but the problem we have is that the technology or facilities or funding is not always available to make it happen.

Materials sent for recycling need to be clean and uncontaminated - it is important that you put the correct materials in the correct recycling bank or container. Even a small amount of contamination can make an entire load unsuitable for recycling. Remove tops from jars, bottles and cans, and make sure that you wash bottles and cans in leftover washing up water rather than running the tap to clean them.  Check with your local authority specifically what can and can't be accepted for recycling in your area.

What happens to the material I send for recycling?It goes to a central depot for sorting, baling and forwarding.  There are two types of Materials Reclamation Facility (MRF) - clean MRF's which deal with pre-separated recyclable materials, and dirty MRF's which deal with mixed rubbish.  Some sorting is done manually and some is done mechanically.  The bales are then sent to the reprocessors - paper mills, glassmakers or plastic reprocessing plants.  Aluminium and glass can be recycled indefinitely, whilst others like paper require the recycled paper to be mixed with new virgin material to make new products.  Plastics tend to be granulated or made into pellets ready for reuse.

Success of Recycling
In order for recycling to be successful there has to be an end user for the products or material.  This process is called "closing the loop".  It is up to us as consumers to take some responsibility to help consume recycled products, and there are many campaigns in place to raise our awareness and to help find new market places for recycled materials and products.  We are all using recycled glass and aluminium every day when we purchase jars, bottles and cans; but it is some of the other recycled materials that we need to consider when we shop.
Many products made from recycled materials are made to equivalent standards as products using raw materials, and this is essential if they are to compete.  For instance, recycled paper is now available at similar standards to high quality virgin paper and behaves equally well in printers and photocopiers. It is imperative that recycled material is of a high standard to compete with virgin material for the purpose of general manufacture too.  It has to be of equal quality, availability, consistency and of course, price is crucial.

Look out for products which are recycled - you can check out the listing of 3,000 + products at www.recycledproducts.org.uk
Suffice to say, that as consumers much of it is down to us - ask your local council to provide recycling facilities for a material if they don't do so already.
Putting pressure on shops to reduce their packaging, particularly their own brand ranges, will eventually make a difference, as will asking them to stock recycled products, because after all we are the consumers and the manufacturers and retailers do have to ultimately cater for our requirements.
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