Repak Recycling Week

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08/10/2009

Archived item. This item is published here for historical reasons. The information below may be out of date.

Press Release Issued 8th October 2009

“Recycle More, Recycle Better”

Repak encourages South Dublin County Householders to Recycle More, Recycle Better

· 9^th Repak Recycling Week focuses on “Recycle Better, Recycle More”

· Exclusive art recycling display

· Repak to target recycling 18,000 tonnes of used packaging during RRW

· Eco Vendor Presentation & Competition at County Hall, Tallaght

6^th October 2009; Repak and South Dublin County Council are joining forces this year to get householders not only to recycle more used packaging, but to further help Ireland’s environmental targets by Recycling More and Recycling Better. This year’s Repak Recycling Week takes place from the 12^th to the 18^th of October and builds on the strong recycling statistics for Ireland that showed an increase of 10% in household packaging recycling rates in 2008, bringing the household packaging recycling rate to close to 45% of all used packaging.

Repak is urging people in South Dublin County to take a number of simple steps in improving the quality of how and what they are recycling, which can have a profound impact on recycling rates. South Dublin County Council is committed increasing recycling rates and the country’s first accessible to all underground bring bank for glass is in operation at Sean Walsh Park Tallaght. This project specifically benefits disabled people but it also encourages non disabled people to recycle. Recycling better involves making a little extra effort, to make a big difference.

Recycle MORE by:

· By recycling regularly from other areas of the house other than from the kitchen.

· By recycling more of what they are currently doing and adding often forgotten/newer recyclables

· If you are not sure whether something can be recycled, take a second to check on www.recyclemore.ie, rather than binning it straight away, or putting it in the incorrect bin

Recycle BETTER by:

· Washing, Rinsing and Squashing all recyclable before placing them in the recycling bin.

· Take a moment to rinse aluminium takeaway trays and cartons straight away after use, and then putting them in your green bin

· Make sure to rinse out toiletry and cleaning product containers before placing in the recycling bin

· Take a second to rinse out milk and juice cartons before putting in the green bin

Recent research has shown that people are regularly recycling from the Kitchen (99%) though this drops significantly as can bee seen below as they move around the house.

· 46% of householders are not recycling regularly from other rooms outside the kitchen

· Only 54% of people recycle regularly from the bathroom

· 46% recycle regularly from the living area

· 36% recycle regularly from the bedroom

· 20% recycle regularly from the home office/study

Repak recommend to increase the recycling rates from other areas of the house that householders place a recycling bin on the landing outside the bedrooms for recyclables rather than dual bins in all rooms.

The most regularly forgotten recyclable items in the house are as follows:

· 51% are not recycling aerosol cans for deodorant, air fresheners and furniture polish

· 45% do not recycle foil trays from takeaways and tart holders

· 41% do not regularly recycle sweet or biscuit tins

· 39% do not recycle plastic detergent or cleaning product bottles

· 35% do not recycle plastic toiletry bottles

South Dublin County Council is hosting a presentation showcasing a new ground breaking automated recycling system that compacts used beverage containers in County Hall Tallaght. One unit can hold up to 3800 cans and 1800 plastic bottles. Come along on the 15^th and 19^th of October to learn more, recycle your cans and plastic bottles and be in with a chance to win an exciting eco gift.

Commenting Dr. Andrew Hetherington, CEO of Repak “This year we are trying to educate people about increasing the range of materials and the importance of the quality of materials being recycled, both in terms of putting the correct recyclables in the correct bins, checking whether an item can be recycled before binning it, and ensuring items are correctly prepared (washed and rinsed) before being put in the green bin. These few small steps only take a few extra minutes but can have a big impact on the quality and overall recycling rates. The presence of residues in certain recyclables like unwashed food tins, plastic bottles etc adversely affect the quality other dry recyclables making it more difficult to recycle and lowering the potential marketability of the material ”.

What’s happening around the country?

To coincide with Repak Recycling Week, Repak is hosting a visual recycling-themed display which has been created by artist and landscape gardener Peter Donegan, and is called “The Greenhouse Effect”. The display will be on exhibition in the Dunnes Stores unit on Grafton St, Dublin from Monday, 5^th of October and will be in position throughout Repak Recycling Week.

Also as part of the Week, the 8^th Repak Recycling Awards will take place on Thursday 15^th October at Croke Park. The awards recognise the efforts and ingenuity of Repak Members, from Industry, Local Authorities and Collectors in the area of packaging prevention, reuse and recycling.

To help consumer to recycle better and recycle more Repak will be launching a new Website www.recyclemore.ie in conjunction with the week. This website is designed to educate visitors as to what to recycle, how to recycle and where they can recycle. It segmented to communicate about recycling in the home, office and School.

Repak are also improving their online profile through further interaction and competitions on the Repak Bebo page (www.repakrecycling.bebo.com). The Bebo page will include online polls, competitions and recycle tips and allow Repak and the (name county) users to swap ideas and interact online. Further information and podcasts are available on the Repak blog (repakrecycling.blogspot.com).

Repak Recycling Week Tips:

1. Organise Household Bins.

Put three bins in the kitchen: one for recyclables; one for compostable vegetable waste; one for general waste. Organise a dedicated storage space in your back garden or kitchen. Most hardware stores like Woodies or B&Q sell a range of special recycling bins and, if you have space, it’s worth investing and installing these into this dedicated area.

1. Recycling in the Bathroom

Many packaged items that are used in the bathroom can be readily accepted into the traditional plastic bottle and kerbside collection systems. Any plastic bottle marked with the symbol 1 or 2 in a triangle, usually on the bottom of the pack, can be accepted into traditional plastic bottle collection systems. It is not only in your own interest to fully empty all bottles and containers, but it also makes recycling the products easier.

1. Recycling in the Bedroom

Ideally, you should have two bins; one for general waste and one for recyclables. If space is an issue then maybe place a recyclable bin on the landing for use by all bedrooms. This will remind you and encourage you to segregate your recyclables from other general waste.

1. Packaging Thrift.

Check for products with less packaging and use re-usable plates, cups and bags. Buy vegetables loose. Put leftover turkey and ham into reusable lunch boxes or containers with lids instead of using non-recyclable aluminium foil or plastic film. A lot of companies have made great strides in reducing the amount of packaging they use in product. For example, did you know the steel in baked bean cans now weigh today only 53% of what it did on the 1970’s dinner table (210g versus 113g for the same amount of beans).

1. Find your nearest Recycling Centre or Bring Bank.

You may be surprised at the wide variety of materials they can accept and most have extended opening hours over Repak Recycle Week. Visit www.repak.ie or check your local paper or for further details.

1. Be Clean.

Wash ‘n’ squash Tetra Pak containers. Rinse out bottle and cans, remove lids and squash plastic containers to save space. Remember don’t litter at bring banks. Take home any boxes or containers you used to bring materials to your local bring bank in.

1. Use Re-usable Bags.

Make sure to use reusable bags when visiting your Recycling Centre or Bring Bank, especially if you’re wash ‘n’ squash your used packaging container. Often people use cardboard boxes, which can get soggy and unusable. Without realising, unfortunately, some people leave these beside Bring Bank and at Recycling Centres – this is littering and makes everyone’s job harder.

1. Recycle used batteries.

Collect up all the used batteries. Consider purchasing a battery re-charger and rechargeable batteries for battery operated toys and gadgets. From the 26^th of September all outlets that sell batteries will be required to provide receptacles in store for customers to return their used batteries for recycling. Alternatively look up www.repak.ie to find your nearest recycling centre that accept batteries.