Newham Council has expanded the recycling service for the borough and from Monday, 15th November residents in Newham will be able to put more of their waste into the orange-lidded recycling bins or orange sacks.
The scheme is an important part of the Council’s Newham Climate Now action plan to help the borough improve its recycling rates dramatically and the production of tonnes of harmful CO2.
Currently residents can recycle paper, cardboard, plastic bottles and tin cans. The new scheme will see glass bottles and jars, clean foil, empty aerosols, clean plastic pots and tubs, yoghurt pots and fruit punnets added to the list of items.
The Council is on track to work with residents and to put in the resources to reverse a history of low recycling rates – previously among the lowest in England. The Council is working to rapidly improve the quality of the recycling collected, and ensure that non-recyclable items are not placed in recycling bins.
Cabinet Lead for Environment, Highways and Sustainable Transport, Councillor James Asser said:
“As the world gathers for COP26, we are all acutely aware of the need to take every action we can to create a greener cleaner world. In our borough we are determined to do all we can to tackle climate change and create a cleaner, greener Newham. This is just one, first step in reducing the damaging impact of our waste on the environment.
“We know that our recycling rates have been far too low for many years and the Council really wants to work with residents and help them to do the right thing with their waste. This scheme is designed to do just that, and we know there is big demand from residents to recycle more. As we approach the launch we will be letting residents know about the changes.
“Our last two budgets have ensured that we target our resources into policies which both tackle climate change and improve our borough and the lives of residents. We urge every resident to work with us, and take that step to recycle more each day, and to think about how we can reduce waste.
“We will be making it clearer for our residents about what they can recycle and how, so they can help to make a difference to the environment.”
The main message for residents is a plea for all recycling waste to be clean and dry.
Cllr Asser added: “The reason this is so important is because if recycling is dirty or in a black bag it can contaminate a whole lorry full of collections, which means none of it can be recycled."
A full list of what can and can’t go in the recycling is available here: https://www.newham.gov.uk/recycle