Carton recycling comes to Oxfordshire
Carton recycling comes to Oxfordshire
Keen, green Oxfordshire residents are being told they can add a new item to the list of things that they can now recycle thanks to a deal struck by the county council.
Beverage cartons can now be recycled at each of the councils eight waste recycling centres. Each year UK beverage carton manufacturers produce around 55,000 tonnes of paper-based cartons for milk and juices and, increasingly, chopped tomatoes and wine.
This equates to around 2.3kg of cartons per household which could be recycled instead of being thrown in the rubbish bin and landfilled.
Oxfordshire County Council, Tetra Pak Ltd and the carbon industry body ACE UK (Alliance for Beverage Cartons and the Environment) have each signed up to the project that makes it possible to recycle the cartons at recycling centres.
Where are the eight recycling centres?
Alkerton: Stratford Road, Alkerton, Nr Banbury,
Ardley Fields: Brackley Road, Ardley,
Dean: Grove Lane, Chadlington, near Chipping Norton
Dix: Linch Hill, Stanton Harcourt.
Redbridge, Old Abingdon Road, Oxford
Drayton: Steventon Road, Drayton, near Abingdon
Stanford in the Vale: Faringdon Road, Standford in the Vale
Oakley Wood, Henley Road, Crowmarsh, near Wallingford.
Even though these cartons cartons can still not be placed in household recycling bins in Oxfordshire, the new project means that used cartons can now be recycled through the special collection bins (taking paper-based cartons only) at the Recycling Centres.
What happens to the cartons?
Once collected they are taken away to be baled and transported to a recycling mill. They can be recycled into a number of different products ranging from plasterboard liner to high strength paper bags and envelopes.
Councillor Roger Belson, Oxfordshire County Council's Cabinet Member for Sustainable Development, said: "The residents of Oxfordshire have always responded well to the different recycling schemes that we have implemented across the county. However, we've still got some tough targets to meet, both as a county and a nation.
"We are delighted that Tetra Pak and the carton industry is supporting us to help increase the number of cartons that can be recycled in Oxfordshire."
Richard Hands, Environment Manager at Tetra Pak and Chairman of ACE UK, added: "While cartons are successfully recycled in large volumes for many years throughout Europe, the UK has a long way to go. It is therefore fantastic news that Oxfordshire County Council is taking a lead by adding cartons to the list of materials for recycling and we hope very much that the initiative is successful.
"We and our industry partners are committed to increasing the level of carton recycling in the UK with the aim of reaching a national network of carton recycling by the end of 2008. Our work with Oxfordshire County Council takes us and households in the area one step closer to achieving that."
For more information on carton recycling in Oxfordshire or a photo opportunity contact John Cherry, Waste Management Service Development Officer on 01865 815225. You can also visit www.tetrapakrecycling.co.uk
Colin Critch · Tue 28 Aug 2007, 21:21 · Link