About Festive Recycling
During the Christmas and New Year periods there is a large and sustained increase in the amount of kerbside material sent for recycling. There is also a corresponding increase in contamination of kerbside recycling. Planet Ark's 2007 National Recycling Week Research showed a number of marked gaps in the public's understanding of kerbside recycling. Around 80% of respondents, for example, didn't recognise that drinkware and window glass was a contaminant.
Higher consumption rates at Christmas and New Year also results in a marked increase in non-kerbside recyclables and waste. In particular, the giving and receiving of presents generates recyclable material that many people have little or no satisfactory disposal knowledge. Gifts like computers, printers, mobile phones, clothes, furniture, glasses and so on often lead to old versions being discarded. All of these items are recyclable through a range of specific reuse or drop-off locations.
The Festive Recycling Campaign, through the use of media, the web and the Festive Green Guide aims to increase the rate of recycling for all of these items. The Campaign also encourages people to reconsider their purchasing behaviour to help minimise waste.
