 Room to improve as recycling takes off
We’re pleased that our borough-wide recycling rate recently increased from 54 per cent to 57 per cent – but we also know some people are filling more than half of their blue rubbish bags with recycling.
A sample of bags put out for collection in some streets found 62 per cent of the contents could have been recycled, while just 38 per cent was non-recyclable rubbish.
The recyclable materials included food waste (20 per cent); paper, cardboard and magazines (11 per cent); garden waste (10 per cent); reusable textiles (eight per cent); plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays (six per cent); glass bottles and jars (four per cent); and tins, cans and aerosols (three per cent).
This needs to improve as the Government expects all councils to recycle 65 per cent of waste by 2035. We want to exceed this to meet our climate emergency goals and reduce our impact on the environment, which is the right thing to do.
To further boost recycling, we’re changing our kerbside waste collections from August, which will also help us to make much-needed savings. We’ll publish more detailed information about wheeled rubbish bin deliveries and new collection dates nearer the time.
Visit our website for more on what you can recycle and how to make the most of the services available to you.
 Don't bin batteries
A fire broke out last week at the re3 recycling centre in Reading, which likely was caused by batteries put out with other waste.
It's important to always recycle unwanted batteries. If binned and crushed, they can cause a fire, threatening the safety of passers-by and our crews. The valuable materials inside, like nickel, zinc, cadmium and lithium, will also be lost forever.
Most supermarkets now have a collection point for household batteries including lithium-ion button batteries and standard barrel-type batteries (AAs, AAAs and so on).
If you have power packs from laptops, mobile phones, power tools, remote control units or vapes, take them to re3 recycling centres. If you can’t remove them, put the whole product into the skip for electrical items on site.
Remember - anything with a plug, battery or cable can be recycled, if it can't be re-used or passed on.
 Take confectionary tubs to pubs
Do you have any plastic sweet or biscuit tubs left over from Christmas?
Apart from recycling them in your green bags, you can now drop them off at one of the pubs, restaurants or hotels managed by Greene King to help raise fund for the national charity Macmillan Cancer Support.
The UK pub and brewing company is running a 'Tub2Pub' recycling campaign to collect clean and empty plastic tubs across the country.
All tubs received will be taken to a specialist recycling facility where they will be processed before being sold to manufacturers for making new products. All proceeds from the sale of Tub2Pub plastics will be donated to the charity.
You have until Sunday 11 February to support this important cause. Visit the Tub2Pub website for more information.
 Next repair cafés
Bring your broken or faulty household items to the next repair cafés in Spencers Wood or Woodley this Sunday 4 February.
Spencers Wood Village Hall Repair Café (RG7 1AP) will be held from 10am to 1pm, while the one at Christ Church in Woodley (RG6 3LA) will be from 2pm to 4pm.
Woodley Repair Café was set up last month by a group of volunteers, and had a great success with their very first session. A variety of electrical items, bikes, toys and tools were repaired, saving 50kg of waste from landfill.
 New recycling centre virtual tours
If you're new to the borough or don't know much about how recycling centres in our area work, take a virtual tour of the facilities to learn more.
Re3 has recently launched virtual tours of the recycling centres in Reading and Bracknell to help residents familiarise with the sites, so they can better prepare for their visits.
The virtual tours provide maps, photos, videos and 360-degree views of key areas inside the two recycling centres. There are also useful tips on how to use the facilities safely and explain what to recycle where on site.
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