Going Green: Celebrating 21 years of recycling products

Starting on the 14th October, the theme for 2024 is ‘Rescue Me’ which champions the reuse of things that might have ended up in the bin or landfill. The website which supports the week has plenty of information about the campaign and the previous themes including “missed capture” recycling things in the home we might not necessarily think are recyclable.

There’s an action pack for kids with plenty of resources for schools too but despite recycling being hugely important for the environment, there’s a lot of misinformation out there about what can and can’t be recycled.

Not all recycling goes abroad. The majority of recycling is processed right here in the UK and what does go overseas to be recycled is checked by the Environment Agency to make sure it’s going to a reputable recycler or processor.

Recycling saves energy. In fact, 95 per cent less energy is needed to make products from materials that have been recycled. Staggeringly too, recycling one fizzy drinks can which is made from aluminium saves enough energy to run a telly for four hours.

Rinsing recyclables is important and you don’t have to run a tap to do it, use a silicon scraper or used water from washing up or even pop them in the dishwasher if you have room. Sending them rinsed to recycling prevents other recyclables from contamination.

It does matter if you get your recycling mixed up when it comes to kerb side collection. The wrong materials in the wrong places, sometimes called “wishcycling”, can lead to contaminating recycled materials, which may end up in the bin or cost your council more to sort out.

You don’t need to understand the recycling number found on plastics to recycle them – the number is purely so manufacturers know what type of resin was used to make the plastic.

Recycling Week, sponsored by Boots and Tesco, gives us all a great opportunity to change behaviours and make a difference.

Why not start recycling something you haven’t before? Or take the stuff that’s been gathering dust to the refuse and recycling centre – it feels so good to have a clear out. Aerosols can be recycled – from deodorants to furniture polish aerosols, they can all be recycled into other materials but need to go in specialist bins as do small electronics or batteries.

There’s often areas at the ‘tip’ where you can pick up a bargain from something someone else has decided to get rid of as an incentive to recycle.

If you have unrecyclable materials gathering dust too, offer it on freecycle or other websites or get the kids involved in making some art out of whatever it is. There are plenty of ideas and junk artist inspiration on social media.