London,
05
October
2009
|
23:00
Europe/London

Hackney’s recycling service continues to get bigger

Residents can now go the extra mile to help make Hackney cleaner and greener following a massive expansion of recycling to include even more materials.

From this week (Monday 5 October), food and drink cartons such as Tetra Paks and plastic packaging have been added to both estate and street level recycling collections in Hackney. The scheme was expanded in response to residents’ requests, and Hackney joins only a handful of councils nationwide to collect these materials.

The new items are in addition to the materials that are already being recycled, including paper, cardboard, glass bottles and jars, food and drink tins and cans, aerosols and plastic bottles, wherever you live in the borough.

While the list of recyclable material is growing, there are still some items that cannot be processed yet. These include polystyrene and foam, plastic films, crisp packet and sweet wrappers, plant pots and Tupperware. It’s also important to make sure that plastic packaging is free from food.

Councillor Alan Laing, Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, said: “Hackney now has one of the best recycling services in terms of range of materials that can be collected. This has been developed progressively and in response to residents’ expectations and development in technology.

“It’s important now that everyone uses the service to its full potential to help towards a cleaner, greener future.”

At present, every street property in Hackney has a weekly collection for Green Boxes (dry recyclables), and Blue Bins (food waste). A Brown Bin service picks up garden waste for over 16,000 properties, while all estates and high-rise properties in the borough have a recycling bank.

Developments in collection, sorting and reprocessing technology and infrastructure mean it is now possible for cartons and plastic packaging to be recycled and the Council has made the necessary arrangement to include these in collection.

If residents include everything that can now be recycled from home they will notice that their rubbish bin is much lighter and takes up less room. They will be doing something positive for the environment and their community by helping to reduce pollution. It will also save money and resources, as the cost of processing landfill waste is more expensive than recycling, helping the Council to run more effectively.

For more information about recycling in Hackney call: 020 8356 6688, or visit: www.hackney.gov.uk/recycling.