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• Recycling FAQs

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• Waste and recycling collections - frequently asked questions (FAQs)
• Recycling FAQs

Recycling FAQs

• Why can’t I put plastic bottles in my recycling box?
• Why can't the Council take plastic packaging (food trays, yoghurt pots etc..)?
• What is the Council doing about packaging from supermarkets?
• Do I need to separate out the things in my boxes?
• Can I put broken glass in the recycling boxes?
• How do I recycle items that I can't leave at the kerbside?
• What happens to the things we recycle?

• Why can’t I put plastic bottles in my recycling box?
  Plastic bottles have a large volume but low weight and low value. If we collected plastic bottles at kerbside the vehicles would soon become full and it would not be economical. It would cost the Council an estimated additional £400,000 per year to introduce a kerbside collection of plastic bottles. The income we received from the material we collected would only amount to about £20,000. However, the Council recently increased the number of plastic bottle recycling banks across the District to 30, so most residents now live within just a few miles of their nearest facility.
• Why can't the Council take plastic packaging (food trays, yoghurt pots etc..)?
  

  This sort of packaging often has the recycling symbol on it but we do not currently have an outlet for this type of material. It is light and of very low value, but very bulky and therefore expensive to transport, making it difficult for reprocessors to deal with it economically. We are aware that many manufacturers of packaging use the recycling symbol but this only indicates that it is theoretically possible to recycle it, not that there is a reprocessing company willing to take it.

• What is the Council doing about packaging from supermarkets?
  

  The Council has asked all supermarkets within the Cotswold District to take action to reduce the amount of packaging which they generate. Many supermarkets and other multi-national organisations have now signed up to the Courthauld Agreement to reduce packaging significantly in the future.

• Do I need to separate out the things in my boxes?
  

  All the different materials are sorted at the kerbside manually into separate compartments.  However, it would help the collection crews if you could separate the materials, and rinse bottles/cans etc.

• Can I put broken glass in the recycling boxes?
  

  Please don't.

  The contents of the boxes are sorted at the kerbside manually by the crew – they risk injury if there is broken glass in the boxes.

• How do I recycle items that I can't leave at the kerbside?
  

  There are nearly 30 recycling banks across the District for plastic bottles. There are also recycling banks for textiles, foil, shoes, books and Tetra Pak-type cartons. Visit:

  • www.recycleforgloucestershire.com

  to find out where your nearest recycling banks are. Many more materials can be recycled at the Household Recycling Centres at Fosse Cross, six miles north of Cirencester, and Pyke Quarry, two miles west of Horsley.

  • More information about household recycling centres... 
• What happens to the things we recycle?
  

  All the separated materials are sent off for reprocessing. For example,  

   

  Paper

  [image Paper Recycling 2]        [image Paper recycling 1]         [image Paper Recycling] 

  Paper being collected.          Washing and De-inking process.    At the Mill being turned

                                                                                             into newsprint.

  Glass

  [image Glass 1]        [image glass2]         [image glass3] 

  Glass being recycled.                 Stored at recycling depot.         Re-processed into  tiles.

  Plastic

  [image plastic4]        [image plastic2]         [image plastic3] 

  Plastic being recycled.                  A conveyor belt sorts.             Plastic garden furniture.

  Steel & Aluminium Cans

  [image cans1]         [image cans2]          [image cans3] 

  Cans being recycled.                     Magnetic sorting of cans.         Recycled into new cans.

   

  To find out where individual items of recycling are recycled follow this link.  Where to: