Recreational recycling boosts local economy

Recycling on the go is on the rise across the UK with many local authorities setting up recycling centres in public areas in a bid to reduce volumes of waste to landfill.

Plastics manufacturer Leafield Environmental is working round the clock to keep ahead of orders for their top-selling, high volume outdoor recycling unit the Envirobank 240L.

Leafield MD Phil Maddox said: “Britain still has a long way to go to increase its recycling rates to meet the target to recycle 50% of waste by 2020 under the European Union’s Waste Framework Directive.”

“Many councils are realising that the age-old problem of litter can be turned into a valuable resource for the local economy. Plastic bottles, cans and newspapers, which usually end up in landfill, can hold a high value when collected separately for recycling.”

Sales of Leafield’s outdoor recycling units have more than doubled in the past year in line with government initiatives like Zero Waste Scotland’s grant funded ‘Recycle on the go’* scheme which helped to encourage land owners, facilities managers and local authorities to invest in outdoor recycling.

“The concept of recycling on the go isn’t just a priority for councils and local authorities, schools, colleges and universities are very aware of the cost and environmental benefits of providing facilities outside. More than half of the respondents to a recent Leafield survey* agreed that students are very likely to recycle more if outdoor units were provided,” he said.