Hackney residents are being encouraged to reduce waste over the festive season and recycle as much as they can through the Council’s usual recycling services.

Around three million tonnes of rubbish is created in Britain over the festive period, half of which could be recycled.

Cardboard packaging, empty jars, foil, wrapping paper and Christmas cards can all be recycled through the Council’s Green Box scheme or at recycling banks on estates.

Residents can help reduce global warming and the money spent on landfill tax further by using the Council’s Blue Bin or estates food recycling services. Freezing leftovers, or using them to make new meals, will also help save money.

Real Christmas trees can also be recycled once they have served their purpose. In Hackney, trees are taken to a facility in North London and made into compost which is then used on the borough’s parks and green spaces.

Residents with a garden waste recycling service can leave their trees next to their Brown Bin on their regular collection day. Christmas trees can also be taken to Millfields Depot, Millfields Road, E5 0AR, for recycling. Residents can drop off trees between 8am and 3pm, Monday to Friday, and 8am to 12noon on Saturdays throughout January.

Alternatively, residents can arrange a bulky waste collection from their property by calling the recycling hotline on 020 8356 6688. This service is free of charge up to four times a year.

Councillor Feryal Demirci, Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, said: “With so many recycling services available to residents in Hackney, we can all do our bit to reduce waste over the festive period.”

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