My 3 top tips for recycling
As has been said before, the first option should be to reduce and reuse - avoid waste in the first place.
However, it is probably inevitable that you will come across things in your household or business that can't be reused and recycling is generally a better option than general waste.
However, it is probably inevitable that you will come across things in your household or business that can't be reused and recycling is generally a better option than general waste.
Recycling itself isn't problem free - the process itself is usually industrial heavy; things are thrown away for recycling which aren't recyclable and end up resulting in the whole batch being incinerated/sent to landfill; and worst still, some recycling waste gets shipped out internationally, essentially pushing the problem on to another country, often in the global south, rather than dealing with it here.
That being said, there are some great innovations that are coming out of recycling, such as toys made from recycled plastic (like Green Toys), nappies/period products from recycled plastic (like TotsBots, Roam Nappies, and Bloom and Nora - made from recycled plastic bottles),and clothing which uses recycled plastic instead of virgin plastic.
That being said, there are some great innovations that are coming out of recycling, such as toys made from recycled plastic (like Green Toys), nappies/period products from recycled plastic (like TotsBots, Roam Nappies, and Bloom and Nora - made from recycled plastic bottles),and clothing which uses recycled plastic instead of virgin plastic.
So recycling does have it's place but it's important to check what you're doing with it so that it can actually be recycled. Here are my 3 tips for recycling waste (if it can't be avoided or reused):
♻️ CHECK YOUR LOCAL COUNCIL POLICY/REQUIREMENTS - I cannot emphasise this enough. Check what can and can't be recycled kerbside. It's annoying that it varies between councils but its important that you check. And policies can change. Eg, it used to be the case that we couldn't recycled yogurt pots in Leeds but we can now. This includes checking eg certain colours (like black plastic), not just type. If you dont know, ask, or you may have an organisation like the brilliant Zero Waste Leeds who provide lots of information too.
♻️ Make sure it's clean(ish). Again, check local requirements - ours say it just has to be clean(ish) to avoid contamination. We save water from the tumble dryer and use that to rinse out cans and tubs etc.
♻️ If it can't be recycled kerbside, can it be recycled elsewhere, such as plastic bag recycling points at supermarkets (often other types of soft or stretchy plastic are accepted too, not just carrier bags but check first) or through one of the many Terracycle schemes. There are so many options raging from shaving razors, baby food pouches, crisp packets, and toothbrush heads. Sometimes local businesses or organisations are Terracycle drop-off points as a way of raising funds. A lot of bigger retailers are getting on board with other sort of recycling too, such as those that let you recycle clothes or Superdrug has recycling points for blister pack (for tablets etc) recycling points and Boots have announced that they're rolling out recycling points for used beauty/wellness product containers.
♻️ CHECK YOUR LOCAL COUNCIL POLICY/REQUIREMENTS - I cannot emphasise this enough. Check what can and can't be recycled kerbside. It's annoying that it varies between councils but its important that you check. And policies can change. Eg, it used to be the case that we couldn't recycled yogurt pots in Leeds but we can now. This includes checking eg certain colours (like black plastic), not just type. If you dont know, ask, or you may have an organisation like the brilliant Zero Waste Leeds who provide lots of information too.
♻️ Make sure it's clean(ish). Again, check local requirements - ours say it just has to be clean(ish) to avoid contamination. We save water from the tumble dryer and use that to rinse out cans and tubs etc.
♻️ If it can't be recycled kerbside, can it be recycled elsewhere, such as plastic bag recycling points at supermarkets (often other types of soft or stretchy plastic are accepted too, not just carrier bags but check first) or through one of the many Terracycle schemes. There are so many options raging from shaving razors, baby food pouches, crisp packets, and toothbrush heads. Sometimes local businesses or organisations are Terracycle drop-off points as a way of raising funds. A lot of bigger retailers are getting on board with other sort of recycling too, such as those that let you recycle clothes or Superdrug has recycling points for blister pack (for tablets etc) recycling points and Boots have announced that they're rolling out recycling points for used beauty/wellness product containers.
Do you have any recycling tips to share?
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