Christmas recycle tips
With 94% of us recycling regularly, Wales is a nation of Mighty Recyclers. We’re the world’s third best recycling nation, and we’re backing Wales Recycles’ Mighty Mission to get to number one.
The latest data reveals we’re one step closer to reaching the top spot with Wales’ overall recycling rate increasing to 65.4%. This means we’re currently recycling just over 65% of our overall waste, exceeding Welsh Government’s ‘Beyond Recycling’ strategy target of 64% for this year.
A survey compiled earlier this year revealed that over 8 in 10 Welsh citizens now see recycling as the 'right' thing to do, with 7 in 10 recycling to do their bit for the environment. More of us than ever see recycling as part of our day-to-day routine.
Interestingly, there has also been a big jump in the number of us citing environmental concerns as our key motivator to recycle. This is fantastic, but with almost half of us still not recycling everything we can, there is more we can do to ensure that our recyclable items are put out with our recycling kerbside collections every week.
If we’re to help Wales get from third in the world to first, and continue protecting our precious resources, we all need to ramp up our efforts this festive period.
Christmas is traditionally the time of year we create the most waste at home. From all the extra food we buy to the mountain of packaging from Christmas gift purchases, it’s a great opportunity to make sure we’re recycling everything we possibly can.
That’s why we’re supporting Wales Recycles’ Be Mighty. Recycle. campaign, funded by Welsh Government, to encourage everyone in Wales to be Mighty Recyclers this Christmas.
Follow these top tips to be a Mighty Recycler this Christmas:
Eat, recycle, be merry. Every council in Wales provides a weekly food waste recycling collection service. Please use it. You can recycle turkey bones, veg peelings and any leftovers that can’t be safely eaten later! And keep recycling other food waste over the Christmas period too, such as tea bags and coffee grounds, eggshells, peelings and cores from fruit, and stale bread.
Conquer your cardboard this Christmas. You can recycle all cardboard from your online deliveries. Remove all packaging tape and flatten any boxes or cut them into smaller pieces to save space in your recycling bag, bin or box. Once Christmas is over, recycle all your cards, just remove any badges, bows, foil, glitter and ribbons first, as these bits can’t be recycled.
Most plastic items from around the home can be recycled including drinks bottles, cleaning detergent bottles and toiletry bottles. Just empty, rinse and squash them before recycling. Leave on any lids, labels, pouring spouts and spray triggers, as these are removed in the recycling process. You can also recycle the big plastic tubs of chocolate and sweets most of us have around the house at Christmas!
Don’t overlook foil this Christmas. Recycle your empty foil mince pies cases and any foil used in your Christmas cooking as long as it’s clean, unstained and free from food, grease and oil. Rinse foil trays and containers before recycling them.
Metal food and drinks cans are recyclable. Just give cans a quick rinse first.
Wrapping paper is difficult to recycle but there are some great eco alternatives such as brown paper and cloth wrapping that can be spruced up with festive bows and ribbons, and the great thing is, they can be used again next year!
If you’re unsure what you can and can’t recycle, visit Wales Recycles’ Recycling Locator.
To learn more about Wales Recycles’ ‘12 days of Christmas’ recycling facts and tips, visit www.bemightyrecycle.org.uk or join the conversation on social media using #BeMightyRecycle and #BeMightyChristmas.
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