PAFA (Packaging And Films Association) has welcomed the UK government’s decision to award a grant to specialist recycler WES Greenstar of Redcar, for capacity to recycle an additional 20,000 tonnes per year of mixed plastic household waste by 2013 (PRW 2 February. The €1.36m grant was awarded by WRAP (Waste and Resources Action Programme).
Barry Turner, PAFA Chief Executive, mentioned that he hopes the grant will indicate a turnaround in UK recycling practice. Most local authorities leave mixed plastics at the bottom of the heap when it comes to collections for recycling because their performance has always been measured on weight of recycled plastic.
As a result, lightweight plastic packaging has largely been ignored, despite its recyclability.
The next step is to get local authorities believing more positively about the collection process needed to get the best out of plastic as a resource-efficient material. Above all, councils need to guarantee that plastics are properly segregated from other waste to avoid contamination, which can severely affect the quality of the recycled materials.
This would overcome the confusion that the public has over what can and cannot be recycled. Once there is uniformity in collection, there will be waste management in the UK.
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