Remember, when recycling “Put it in loose, so it can be of use.”
Here are four of the most common recycling mistakes. Are you making them?
Mistake 1: 36% of people put recyclable items inside a plastic bag before disposing into the yellow bins
If recyclables are inside a bag (even if it’s paper), all items will be sent to landfill. Soft plastic bags (the kind that can be scrunched into a ball) cannot be recycled through kerbside recycling. Any three-dimensional plastic packaging, such as moulded biscuit packaging (except yoghurt containers), are suitable for the yellow bin. Remember, “Put it in loose, so it can be of use.”
Mistake 2: Old/broken drinking glasses, and plate glass
More than half of us believe drinking glasses, plate glass such as window panes and oven-proof glass can be recycled. They can’t. The glass has been toughened and requires a higher temperature to melt than normal glass. Place in the general-refuse bins only.
Mistake 3: Ditch single-use cutlery
Most of us know you cannot recycle chopsticks or any single-use cutlery made from plastic, wood or bamboo, via the kerbside collections. Keep a spare set of reusable picnic knives and forks at work, or in your car. Ask the staff at the takeaway shop to leave cutlery out from your order.
Mistake 4: Compostable plastic biodegrades in landfill and should be placed in the general-refuse bin
Biodegradable or “compostable” plastic items cannot be put in the recycling bin, as they contaminate the recycling process. Place these items in the regular rubbish bin and they will compost in landfill.
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