Recent research has shown that households in South Oxfordshire are looking to become the top recyclers in the UK.

The South Oxfordshire District Council launched a new recycling waste scheme just over 6 weeks ago and since then has achieved a 71% recycling rate for household waste. This figure is probably the highest in Britain. Materials that are being recycled from people’s doorsteps include glass, plastic, metal and paper.

It cannot yet be confirmed whether South Oxfordshire is definitely at the top of the UK recycling lead table as the current lead table only runs from 2007 to 2008. However the top recycling rate in 2007 / 2008 was 58% and South Oxfordshire has been running at 71% in the first 5 weeks so it’s believed that they will come out on top of the 2008 / 2009 table.

The department of Environment figures show that the recycling rate for Oxfordshire District Council waste in 2007 / 2008 was 39% so the current figure is a massive improvement.

As London has not been hitting recent recycling targets, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are doing an experiment to tag rubbish to show people where it actually ends up.

The experiment which is being done in collaboration with New Scientist magazine will follow London rubbish from outside your house, then onto landfills, recycling sites and then wherever it ends up.

A trial run has already started on 50 waste bins in the USA and then thousands of home’s rubbish bins will be tagged this summer in London, New York and Seattle.

In order to track the waste a small device will be attached to the rubbish. Each tracker has a SIM card and will beep the location of the rubbish every 15 minutes via mobile network antennas, this information will then be relayed back to the scientists.

Editor of New Scientist magazine, DR Roger Highfield, said “It’s very easy to throw something in the bin and never think about it again especially as you will have no idea what effect it is causing on the environment. Poor recycling is not just a problem facing London; it is a problem that is facing the whole planet.”

“Everyone is responsible and the trackers will show us to what extent.”

The results of the trash tracker experiment will be posted on the New Scientist website and in the magazine in the near future.

A recent poll has found that over a fifth of councillors believe that if recycling targets in the UK are not met by 2020 then Council Tax may rise in that year. In order to try and stop this from becoming a reality a new campaign to double plastic recycling rates has been launched.

Reuse, Reduce, Recover and Recycle

The Plastics industry has made several targets on the 4 R’s which stand for reuse, reduce, recover and recycle. They aim to double the recycling rate of plastic by the year 2020.

If the targets are missed 18% of councillors in the poll said that Council Tax could rise above 5%, with over half saying it would be above 10%.

Plastics 2020 Challenge

The challenge which is backed by MPs, is the first time that Plastics manufacturers and processing companies have come together to set their own targets to try and reduce the amount of plastic that goes to landfill.

The challenge will get the government, environmental groups and consumers to work with the industry to find ways to improve recycling rates and reduce plastic packaging usage.

A recent study showed that 94% of people thought that there is too much food packaging and supermarkets should be doing much more to try and reduce it.

It is very welcoming to see the plastics industry come up with proposals to help drive up recycling rates in the future.

Every year in the UK alone we generate just under 435 million tonnes of waste, of this amount only 18% is being recycled, this is one of the worst rates in Europe. Recycling waste is a great way not only to help save energy but also to make a big difference to the environment.

Some of the most interesting recycling facts and figures are shown below to help you understand why recycling is so important:

- Every year 17.5 million plastic bags are used that works out at 300 per person

- 3 million tonnes of plastic waste are generated in the UK every year, of this amount 7% is recycled, the other 93% is either incinerated or ends up on a landfill

- Food waste amounts for 21% of total waste

- Every year 12 billion aluminum cans are thrown in the bin

- Over 60% of the rubbish that is thrown away can be recycled

- Before the introduction of the car scrapage system in the UK very few cars or car parts were being recycled. Thanks to the introduction of the system this is starting to change

- Glass which is thrown in the bin and ends up on landfills will last thousands of years before decomposing. In the middle east there have been finds of glass made over 3000 years ago

- One tonne of newspaper takes 24 trees to produce

- Recycling one glass bottle can save enough energy to power a computer for 25 minutes

- Its estimated that there are just under 100 million unused mobile phones in the UK. Recycle your mobile today

- Every minute 100 acres of rainforest’s are being cut down

- In an average persons lifetime they will go through 3.3 tonnes of electrical waste

- 9 out of 10 people said they will recycle more often if it was easier to do

Recycle your old mobiles, iPods, Games, CDs and DVDs for cash and help save our environment today!