Ericathephantom’s Weblog

RELATED TO PREVIOUS POST: Are Our Recycling Efforts Making any Difference?

With an emphasis on recycling in the home, so many businesses aren’t doing their bit to help.

Businesses that aren’t recycling large amounts of recyclable waste or packaging make small efforts made in households seem a waste of time. However, some businesses just don’t have the time or facilities to recycle effectively. 

Maria Gray, the manager of a restaurant in Wolverhampton said:

“ Shamefully, we do not recycle everything that it is possible. We have a dedicated cardboard bin but on busy nights this gets filled up far too quickly and the majority of it gets thrown away with the regular waste.  

We also recycle glass but unfortunately the council hasn’t provided us plastic recycling facilities. Even if we did have plastic recycling facilities, there would be near impossible to wash every container for recycling, especially on the busy weekend nights”.

“We’d like to do more to help with recycling but there just isn’t the time or space available even if we did have the proper facilities.”

 Supermarkets have recently been cracked down on the amount of recyclable packaging they use. Marks & Spencer and Lidl used the lowest percentage of packaging which could be recycled, at 62 per cent.

M&S took the same title last year. Dr Helene Roberts, head of food packaging at Marks & Spencer, said: “We’re really disappointed with the report, which does not reflect reality. From our independently audited data we know that 91 per cent of our food packaging is recyclable. By 2012 we want to reach 100 per cent. ”

“The LGA has chosen to only look at a skewed sample of 29 products out of our 5,500 lines, which are not representative. The real issue at the moment is the inconsistency in recycling facilities across the UK. “

The efforts we make at home seem pretty insignificant compared to the neglect of large businesses. A Defra spokesman said: “Individual local authorities have the responsibility to determine the recycling solutions that best suit their communities”

 “Five local authorities will next year be undertaking pilot schemes to create incentives for recycling. We will evaluate the impact of those pilots before making a final decision on whether other local authorities can introduce similar schemes.

“LGA environment board chairman Cllr Paul Bettison said: “The days of the cling-film coconut must come to an end. We all have a responsibility to reduce the amount of waste being thrown into landfill, which is damaging the environment and contributing to climate change.