Tuesday 5 June 2012

The future of hard plastics recycling is here!

I've enjoyed many unique experiences since starting this blog, but there have been none so fascinating as a recent project, where I accompanied waste management company FCC Environment to find out what happens to the hard plastics that are recycled through the Household Waste Recycling Centres in Suffolk.

Yes, you read that correctly. Hard plastics, aka rigid plastics, where examples include broken toys, garden furniture, kitchen utensils and even coat-hangers. You name it, if it's made from hard plastic, even if it has metal components, Suffolk HWRCs can recycle it!

Yes, even broken loo seats!

I wanted to find out how effective and efficient the process was and share the results with the residents of Suffolk, who can help the county divert even more of this material from being buried in landfill.  After all, if we've got such excellent facilities for recovery, it seems utter nonsense to waste it.

The video of our discoveries, prepared by FCC_Environment  and Suffolk County Council for this year's Suffolk Show, introduces the innovative recycling process developed by EMR & MBA Polymers, which not only creates recycled plastic that matches the quality of virgin polymer, but uses only 10% of the energy required to make equivalent polymers from oil.

So if you've ever been frustrated over why your hard plastic gubbins can't be recycled, the answer is that they can. For more information, have a peek at the video below:



If you're attending this year's Suffolk Show, more details will be available from the FCC Environment stand (580).  I will be there on Thursday 7th June, where I will be delighted to talk about the visit as well as any aspect of the Rubbish Diet.  More information about the project can be found in the FCC Environmental press release.

 

2 comments:

Suze said...

I wish I lived in Suffolk. How forward thinking to be recycling hard plastic.
Down here in Sussex we only have a limited plastic recycling scheme. So much has to be thrown to landfill.
I'm new to your site but it's great. I'd love to be zero waste. We fill one swing bin bag a week with waste for landfill - which is more than I'd like, but there are 4 of us in the house and 2 of those are almost 'anti-recyling'! It has been known for me to pull stuff out of the bin to go in the recycling bin!

Almost Mrs Average said...

Hi Suze, great to hear from you. Welcome to the world of 'bin-fishing'. I even still do that, when convenience gets the better of man of the house. :) It sounds like you're doing brilliantly. I hope this blog helps in some way and also that local services keep improving. Changing the waste landscape is a slow process but it is getting better and progress is being made in many sectors.

Related Posts Widget for Blogs by LinkWithin