500,000 tonnes of recycling dumped by councils – with most put in landfill

Nearly half a million tonnes of recycling was dumped by councils in landfill or incinerated, a Mirror probe has found.

Last year, a record 497,000 tonnes – or 4% of the total – was rejected due to “contamination”.

In 2011, only 184,000 tonnes (1.7%) ended up in landfill.

Individual councils decide how they collect recycling, with different rules for what can be collected and how it can be mixed.

But this hotch-potch approach can cause confusion about what can go in the recycling bin.

Contamination occurs when the wrong items are put into the bins or when containers are not completely empty.

Items then have to be filtered out and put in with the landfill waste.

This means individual items have to be filtered out and put in with the normal waste.

Bin lorries can also be turned around at the gates at recycling plants if their contents are rejected wasting time and money.

Dorset Waste Partnership had the highest amount of rejected recycling with 15,402 tonnes, followed by Bradford City Council with 10,435 tonnes.

Recycling Association chief executive Simon Ellin said the figures were “not a surprise”.

He said: ‘Local authorities need to communicate better with the public about what can and can’t go in the recycling bin.

“But we also need retailers and manufacturers to create products and packaging that are easy to understand as recyclable or not. Too often it isn’t clear whether products are recyclable or not.”

Cllr Martin Tett, environment spokesman for the Local Government Association (LGA), added: “Some level of contamination is inevitable and councils are working hard with residents to ensure that as much waste as possible can be recycled.

“Boosting recycling is only addressing half the problem. Councils want retailers and manufacturers to

do more to stop non-recyclable material, such as black plastic trays, from ending up in household waste.

“It’s also clear that the ban by China on imported waste is already having an impact, with some councils warning their recycling costs have increased by £500,000 over the last year as a result of the restrictions.”

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