Nearly 9 out of 10 people now offered plastic bottle recycling service << Back to Main News Page Added: Monday, 19 June 2006 Research funded by WRAP (the Waste and Resources Action Programme) carried out by Recoup (RECycling Of Used Plastics) has highlighted that 86% of councils collect plastic bottles for recycling and kerbside collection schemes reach almost half of all UK households. The UK Plastic Bottle Recycling Survey 2006 analyses data submitted by 471 local authorities, to provide a detailed profile of collections of plastic bottles from UK households. This unique survey is the most up to date source of information available to those interested in plastics recycling and is a comprehensive reference tool. Collections are performing at an annualised rate of 85,000 tonnes which equates to 17% of plastic bottles in the household waste stream. This is almost double the quantity that was collected in 2004 with 72% of the bottles recovered through kerbside schemes. Key findings of the research include: there has been a 16% increase in the number of plastic bottle recycling schemes since the end of 2004 86% of local authorities offer plastic bottle recycling facilities, 47% of households are offered kerbside collections including plastic bottles. average quantity of plastic bottles collected from each household is 5.5kg, an increase of 1.6kg since 2004. In addition, 10% of local authorities reported collections of household plastics as well as bottles. Types of plastics included various combinations of carrier bags, packaging film, tubs and trays, plant pots, expanded polystyrene and other 'dense' plastics. The survey also includes performance and cost analysis of the different collection approaches adopted by councils throughout the UK, together with predictions about future trends. 91 councils, a third of those responding to questions on scheme costs indicated that it costs little or no extra to collect plastic bottle of recycling compared to collecting them for disposal by other means, further evidence that plastic bottle recycling can be achieved cost effectively. Based on local authority declarations it is estimated that the provision of bottle recycling within kerbside collections will exceed 55% of households during 2006/7, and forecast that 90,000 tonnes per annum of plastic bottles will be collected by 2007, the majority through kerbside collection. Andrew Simmons, Chief Executive Officer of Recoup, said: "The increase shown by the survey is great news and using the data provided, it is estimated that the provision of plastic bottle recycling within kerbside collections will exceed 13.5 million households during 2007 - or 55% of all UK households. In addition, 6,700 bring sites are also expected to be operational by the end of 2007." "The accelerated rise in plastic bottle recycling is extremely encouraging, particularly since plastic is not a priority waste stream in the context of the weight-based targets faced by local authorities. Improved understanding of the logistics and benefits of plastic collection schemes and increased emphasis on best practice through recycling advice are key to maximising scheme efficiency. Strong public demand for facilities to recycle all types of plastic packaging and confidence in end markets are also influential growth factors," says Paul Davidson, WRAP Plastic Technology Manager. The full survey is available our resource centre at : http://www.recoup.org/shop