The Veolia Orchard scheme was launched in 2022 to improve the wellbeing of young people and to nurture their skills to create a positive change to their environment. Local schools were invited to apply to receive five free fruit trees to start their own orchard. Seven schools were successful and received their mini orchards last autumn.

This year it is back and bigger than ever. Veolia, our waste contractor, has been working in partnership with the community action charity Groundwork UK, as well as Nottinghamshire County Council to offer more schools an orchard. An amazing 21 schools have been successful and will be receiving their orchards later in the year.

Each orchard is intended to become a learning resource for pupils, empowering them to improve their environment and combat climate change, as well as offering them an ongoing supply of fresh fruit.

Wondering what to do with your used light bulbs? Let’s give you the lowdown…

Please do not put any energy saving bulbs or fluorescent tubes into your bins at home as these contain components or chemicals which need specialist treatment.

Light bulbs shouldn’t be placed into glass bottle banks or bins either as they are made of a different type of glass and contain metal parts, which can contaminate the glass recycling process.

All types of light bulbs are accepted at all 12 of our recycling centres.

These types of wrappers and bags have been around for some years now, but do you know the difference?

Everything that is compostable is also biodegradable. However, not all biodegradable products are compostable.

Biodegradable refers to any material that breaks down and decomposes in the environment, some of which can leave unwanted waste behind. Compostable items are organic matter that breaks down naturally and the end product has beneficial uses such as fertilising soil. This makes compostable items suitable for home composting.

If you don’t have a compost bin at home, please put compostable items in your general waste bin. Please don’t put compostable or biodegradable items in your garden waste bin as they break down much slower than other garden materials.

The summer holidays are over and children are heading back to school. Follow our top tips to make sure the new school year gets off to a green start.

• Reuse as many school supplies as possible. Reusing older items such as pencils, pens, notebooks and even clothes helps reduce the use of the earth’s precious resources.
• If you need to purchase new supplies, consider purchasing ones made from recycled materials.
• Choose reusable lunch boxes and bottles. This can help to reduce the amount of disposable packaging.
• If you live close to school, walking or cycling is a great way to exercise and can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Carpooling or taking the bus also helps reduce the toxins we release into the air.
• If you have unwanted or outgrown uniform items why not donate them to a school uniform bank? They will help another family and save waste.
• If you are upgrading smartphones or laptops make sure any unwanted items are taken to your local recycling centre.

Have you ever wondered what happens to old plastic milk bottles?

Bales of plastic milk bottles are sent to a recycling facility, where they are then sorted, shredded and turned into pellets. These can be turned into brand new milk bottles and be back on the supermarket shelves in under two weeks!

Making recycled plastic bottles is great for the environment too. Recycling the bottles uses about 70% less energy than making them from new materials.

All plastic bottles in your home can go into your recycling bin, but please make sure they are empty and clean before you bin them. Don't forget to squash your clean plastic bottles and pop their lids back on before you recycle them.