With news on: Zero Waste Scotland in mattress recycling partnership; Welsh government unveils recycling consultation; Community fridge launched in Merseyside; Veolia Christmas scheme helps children recycle.
Zero Waste Scotland in mattress recycling partnership
Zero Waste Scotland and the National Bed Federation (NBF) have announced that they will work together on a three-year research project to increase mattress recycling and encourage more sustainable design.
The partnership will see the organisations design a proposed Extended Producer Responsibility scheme for mattresses in Scotland, under which manufacturers are “responsible for the stewardship of their product in a way that discourages wasteful disposal”.
Mattresses in Scottish landfill
Such schemes encourage producers to design products that last longer, are easy to repair, and are recyclable when they reach the end of their usable life.
Iain Gulland, chief executive of Zero Waste Scotland, said: “The scale of mattress waste in Scotland is staggering, with close to three quarters of a million mattresses disposed of in Scotland each year.
“We understand that less than 1% are being collected for recycling. That represents a huge waste of the materials and labour that went into making those mattresses in the first place, as well as a lost opportunity to recover valuable materials such as steel and natural and synthetic fibres that could be reprocessed into new products and materials.”
Welsh government unveils recycling consultation
The Welsh government has launched a consultation called “Beyond Recycling” which outlines plans to make Wales a “world leader in recycling.”
The eight-point plan was announced in Llangollen, north-east Wales, alongside an additional £6.5 million in circular economy funding for local authorities and other publicly funded bodies.
The consultation document maps plans for a circular economy in Wales
Beyond Recycling aims to move Wales towards a circular economy – keeping resources in use for as long as possible and avoiding waste.
This includes reaching zero waste by 2050 and “taking action on the Climate Emergency to seize the economic opportunities to create a greener, more equal and more prosperous Wales.”
It will achieve this by “phasing out single use plastic, investing in clean technology for material collection and taking responsibility of their waste.”
Deputy minister for housing and local government Hannah Blythyn said: “Wales is already leading the way in the UK when it comes to recycling, but I want us to go further and take the next step. We’re on a journey towards becoming a circular economy where waste is avoided and resources are kept in use for as long as possible.”
Community fridge launched in Merseyside
A £25,000 grant from the Merseyside Recycling and Waste Authority (MRWA) has led to a community fridge being opened to cut down on food waste.
Called ‘Let’s Get Cooking’, the initiative has launched its first community fridge in Wallasey where residents are urged to contribute left over fruit, veg and other food, which will be free for anyone to take.
Staff launching the community fridge in Merseyside
The fridge has been organised as part of a wider scheme called “Let’s Get Saving in Merseyside” designed to help Merseyside reduce its food waste.
Let’s get cooking project manager Suzanne Mitchell said: “This is a great new resource that will help the local community reduce their food waste and help those in need access fresh and healthy food.”
Veolia pioneers Christmas recycling scheme
Veolia have pioneered a Christmas scheme helping small children to recycle by encouraging them to send in festive letters about recycling.
Veolia pioneered a Christmas scheme helping small children to recycle
The winning letters were a set of poems from nine-year old twins Charlie and Freddie Anderson from Retford, which implore the reader to consider their festive waste.
The young poets and their family received tickets to the Nottingham Playhouse pantomime of Sleeping Beauty, where they met the cast and were presented with a Christmas gift from Veolia.
The works included such rhythmic requests as “just recycle every tin and your cans go in the bin” and “No plastic bag hear Santa cheer, or pouches from his nine reindeer”. The boys also urged readers to reduce waste by re-using and repurposing, setting an example by turning old t-shirts into bags at their school.
The post News in Brief (23/12/2019) appeared first on letsrecycle.com.
Source: letsrecycle.com Waste Managment
