Recycling, The Confusion.

[Parafox]

Recently I have been trying harder to recycle correctly.

 

It's a bit of a minefield for consumers. (Effectively everyone).

 

Glass, plastic (not hard), cardboard etc. All the things we are already pretty much recycling already. Then I looked more at the packaging, in particular food packaging from things like ready packed salad, fruit and vegetables. Also crisps and other snacks.

 

Almost all of these I assumed could be recycled in our blue bin. But I found this symbol which I wasn't aware of before.

 

 

 

Now it seems I need a 5th bin to go alongside our general waste, recycling, garden waste, and compostable food waste bins to accommodate stuff that has to go to a "large" supermarket.

 

Surely it can be easier. 

 

I feel there's too much onus on the individual to recycle correctly which creates an adverse response of just "bung it in the bin" because that's the easy option, particularly for the elderly, housebound and the lazy.

 

 

Edited 1 December 2023 by Parafox

[MPH]

Maybe I should put this in the unpopular opinions thread . but where I live we get a whole separate full size wheelie bin for recycling. We don’t have the set up to separate our recycling  but I’d be reluctant to, even if we did..  don’t get me wrong , I recycle what I can but I understand our local council makes a lot of money out of recycling- it’s a good income for them and  considering this, I feel they should sort through it themselves.

[SouthStandUpperTier]

12 minutes ago, Parafox said:

Then I looked more at the packaging, in particular food packaging from things like ready packed salad, fruit and vegetables. Also crisps and other snacks.

 

Almost all of these I assumed could be recycled in our blue bin. But I found this symbol which I wasn't aware of before.

 

 

 

 

This is for soft plastics. Which basically means anything that you can scrunch up in your hand that will try to spring back into shape when you let it go. Pretty much all major supermarkets have a big recycling container for these somewhere near the entrance. It's where I take things like empty pet food sachets and crisp multipack bags etc. The main issue I have is remembering to take them with me when I go for the weekly shop.

[ALC Fox]

It isn't ideal and we only have two separate recycling bins.

 

But for those soft plastics referred to in the OP, we just put the first one on the side after it's been rinsed out and dried, then put all other ones inside until it's about bursting and then take it round the co-op nearby when we next need to go.

 

A bit of a ball ache but I'm not buying a separate bin for them.

[Steve_Guppy_Left_Foot]

Seven bin Sunak tried his best.

[FoyleFox]

3 hours ago, Parafox said:

Recently I have been trying harder to recycle correctly.

 

It's a bit of a minefield for consumers. (Effectively everyone).

 

Glass, plastic (not hard), cardboard etc. All the things we are already pretty much recycling already. Then I looked more at the packaging, in particular food packaging from things like ready packed salad, fruit and vegetables. Also crisps and other snacks.

 

Almost all of these I assumed could be recycled in our blue bin. But I found this symbol which I wasn't aware of before.

 

 

 

Now it seems I need a 5th bin to go alongside our general waste, recycling, garden waste, and compostable food waste bins to accommodate stuff that has to go to a "large" supermarket.

 

Surely it can be easier. 

 

I feel there's too much onus on the individual to recycle correctly which creates an adverse response of just "bung it in the bin" because that's the easy option, particularly for the elderly, housebound and the lazy.

 

 

Couldn't agree more. It's a pain and you're not sure if you're putting the right items in the right boxes/binbags. We've got 5 I think for different stuff. Where we used to live we had 1 recycling bin and everything could go in it. We recycled a lot more then. 

[grobyfox1990]

I have general, glass, cardboard/paper, plastic. Then I take soft plastics to the supermarket at the end of every week. It’s really not that hard 

[Dr The Singh]

I have this very expensive utility, its called a wife that deals with issue, and I assume very well.

 

If there was a choice id rather kill the planet rather than keep the wife.

[FoyleFox]

We have an update on our recycling provision for NWLDC. Still awaiting funding, but a revised plan has been agreed.

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c2ew4j3x17vo

 

Although, if we merge with another Council area, I'm not sure if it will go ahead, but I very much hope that it does.

[Robo61]

On 01/12/2023 at 19:53, MPH said:

Maybe I should put this in the unpopular opinions thread . but where I live we get a whole separate full size wheelie bin for recycling. We don’t have the set up to separate our recycling  but I’d be reluctant to, even if we did..  don’t get me wrong , I recycle what I can but I understand our local council makes a lot of money out of recycling- it’s a good income for them and  considering this, I feel they should sort through it themselves.

I doubt very much that councils make any money from recycling.  In any case any money made will go to providing services to you and I.  If you wish to pay more council tax by all means lobby the council for them to take  responsibility for sorting recycling.

[Parafox]

5 hours ago, FoyleFox said:

We have an update on our recycling provision for NWLDC. Still awaiting funding, but a revised plan has been agreed.

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c2ew4j3x17vo

 

Although, if we merge with another Council area, I'm not sure if it will go ahead, but I very much hope that it does.

 

We have 3 bins, one for garden waste, one for recyclable waste i.e card, glass, tins and solid plastics (not those people you see at Old Trafford BTW), and a third for general waste.

 

We can't recycle soft plastics in any form unless we separate them and take to a soft plastics recycling skip or receptacle if we can find one. I'm not one for rooting through my waste to peel off every bit of polythene/shrink wrap/sticky tape from everything that goes in the various bins.

 

Even the wrap around labels on milk cartons has to be removed before the container can go in the recycling.

 

I accept the need but it's a ****ing chore and sometimes I CBA!

 

Also, if the brown bin is for compostable waste like leaves, grass cuttings etc why can't I dispose of vegetable peelings? 

 

One time, we missed the recycling collection. I phoned the council to request a special collection as the bin was full. They said just chuck it in the non-recyclable waste. So then, I might as well not bother with the effort of recycling... 

Edited 23 April by Parafox

[dsr-burnley]

On 01/12/2023 at 19:53, MPH said:

Maybe I should put this in the unpopular opinions thread . but where I live we get a whole separate full size wheelie bin for recycling. We don’t have the set up to separate our recycling  but I’d be reluctant to, even if we did..  don’t get me wrong , I recycle what I can but I understand our local council makes a lot of money out of recycling- it’s a good income for them and  considering this, I feel they should sort through it themselves.

Not any more.  Going back quite a few years the councils used to sell the rubbish to recycling companies; now (and even in 2023 when this was posted) they have to pay to have the companies accept it.  

[MPH]

2 hours ago, Robo61 said:

I doubt very much that councils make any money from recycling.  In any case any money made will go to providing services to you and I.  If you wish to pay more council tax by all means lobby the council for them to take  responsibility for sorting recycling.

 

37 minutes ago, dsr-burnley said:

Not any more.  Going back quite a few years the councils used to sell the rubbish to recycling companies; now (and even in 2023 when this was posted) they have to pay to have the companies accept it.  

 

should clarify that I live in the United States 

[Trav Le Bleu]

9 hours ago, MPH said:

 

 

should clarify that I live in the United States 

 

One of the best solutions is to encourage more people to have compost bins. A lot of councils provide them, but often at a cost similar or more than your local garden centre.

 

Anyone with a decent size garden should have a compost bin. If you've got a large garden, starting a heap in an out-of-the-way corner surely isn't too much trouble?

[MPH]

2 hours ago, Trav Le Bleu said:

 

One of the best solutions is to encourage more people to have compost bins. A lot of councils provide them, but often at a cost similar or more than your local garden centre.

 

Anyone with a decent size garden should have a compost bin. If you've got a large garden, starting a heap in an out-of-the-way corner surely isn't too much trouble?

 In fact it’s very beneficial.  you can use it to grow stuff with once it’s broken down

[goose2010]

wait until next year when you will have to separate food waste too... general waste bins also will go to once a month instead of once a week. 

[whoareyaaa]

Most of it don't even get recycled 

[jgtuk]

2 hours ago, whoareyaaa said:

Most of it don't even get recycled 

I think the recycling industry was pushed by the fossil fuel industry to make people think that it’s sustainable. In reality, recycling will never work, we need to stop producing plastics and find alternatives. 

JSO were onto them a long time ago. 

[leicsmac]

16 minutes ago, jgtuk said:

I think the recycling industry was pushed by the fossil fuel industry to make people think that it’s sustainable. In reality, recycling will never work, we need to stop producing plastics and find alternatives. 

JSO were onto them a long time ago. 

If that's true, then we're not in for good time because the only thing that will stop people using such things that make they lives easier is either a sustainable item that makes it easier still (and is of equal or lesser cost) or disaster. Which one of those is much more likely?

 

Let us hope that you're wrong.

Edited 24 April by leicsmac

[jgtuk]

32 minutes ago, leicsmac said:

If that's true, then we're not in for good time because the only thing that will stop people using such things that make they lives easier is either a sustainable item that makes it easier still (and is of equal or lesser cost) or disaster. Which one of those is much more likely?

 

Let us hope that you're wrong.

I hope so too. 
It just strikes me as odd that plastic cartons, bottles, food containers etc. are still being produced in huge quantities but you would expect the figures to fall if recycling were as successful as we are led to believe. 

[leicsmac]

6 minutes ago, jgtuk said:

I hope so too. 
It just strikes me as odd that plastic cartons, bottles, food containers etc. are still being produced in huge quantities but you would expect the figures to fall if recycling were as successful as we are led to believe. 

I'd have to look up numbers to really talk further on this one.

 

But prefacing that, drawing down somewhat on consumption, recycling and transitioning to more sustainable options are, I think,  all facets of the possible solution.

[jgtuk]

4 hours ago, leicsmac said:

I'd have to look up numbers to really talk further on this one.

 

But prefacing that, drawing down somewhat on consumption, recycling and transitioning to more sustainable options are, I think,  all facets of the possible solution.

The key word here…

[FoyleFox]

13 hours ago, Trav Le Bleu said:

 

One of the best solutions is to encourage more people to have compost bins. A lot of councils provide them, but often at a cost similar or more than your local garden centre.

 

Anyone with a decent size garden should have a compost bin. If you've got a large garden, starting a heap in an out-of-the-way corner surely isn't too much trouble?

We got rid of our compost bin as it didn't compost.

[Foxdiamond]

On a slightly different point. I have milk delivered in glass bottles as in the old days . At least no plastic milk cartons to worry about 

[leicsmac]

9 hours ago, jgtuk said:

The key word here…

I emphatically agree.

 

But that transition will either act in a way that is reasonable to people, or in a way that busts up their lives. The abrupt way, unless someone comes up with a miracle option that can be utilised right away, tends to be more the latter than the former.