The British Plastics Federation (BPF) has stated that the new government target of a 32% increase over 10 years of the amount of plastic packaging to be recycled is unachievable and will be impossible to meet. The Federation said that even if new recycling facilities were built the target could still not be met.

The BPF went on to say that by aiming for such a high target it could jeopardize UK recycling by pushing the recycling industry into uneconomical and non Eco-safe measures through the heavy consumption of water and energy needed to meet such a target.

The BDF did point out they they would support any responsible plans that the Government would like to propose in stopping plastic waste from ending up at landfill, but the infrastructure to meet such high targets is not yet in place.

The new target was set in a Government paper called ‘Implementing the Packaging Strategy’ in which they proposed that 56.9% of all plastic packaging should be recycled by 2020.

As most people now use the Internet to find names and numbers, Yellow Pages and Phone Books are being thrown straight into recycling bins and clogging up landfill.

According to the local government association phone books are creating over 75,000 tonnes of waste paper every year and costing taxpayers £7.5 million to dispose of them.

The data publishers association said that phone directories are still an important resource even with many people using the Internet.

Householders who are just dropping the Yellow Pages or BT Phone directories straight into the recycle bin should contact the companies and ask for the directories not to be delivered.

All three directories can be cancelled at once by visiting the website Junk Buster

A new report has found that airlines are generating over 800 million pounds of waste every year but only 20% is actually being recycled.

Most of the rubbish from airlines is generated in flight. The report uncovered that many airlines are not even recycling aluminium cans and in 2004 enough cans were thrown in the bin to build 58 Boeing 747 jets. In the same year just less than 10,000 tonnes of plastics and enough newspapers to cover a football pitch 250 meters deep were chucked in the bin.

Only 16% of passengers feel that enough is being done to recycle onboard waste.

In the UK Monarch Airlines was the first to introduce a recycling scheme, where they place all cans, magazines, newspapers and champagne bottles in a recycling bag and recycle them when landing at Gatwick airport. Thomas Cook UK Airlines also launched a national onboard recycling scheme in January 2009.

British Airways have also recently announced that they will be building a new plant in the UK to turn 500,000 tonnes of waste materials into 16,000,000 gallons of fuel for their planes.

British Airways has recently announced that they will be making a new deal with American Biofuel to create a plant in the UK that will recycle 500,000 tonnes of waste material into 16,000,000 gallons of fuel for them to use in their planes.

The new plant is the first time British Airways has made a move into the recycling market and will probably mean they will get big tax breaks from the government. The government has not comment on the deal yet but this will be seen as a major breakthrough for the green movement in Britain.

The new recycling plant will be built within the next two years after planning permission has been given and is expected to create up to 1200 jobs.

Thanks to a new recycling scheme, RecycleBank which rewards householders with gift vouchers for recycling their waste, residents in one of the trial areas, Halton have already significantly increased their recycling efforts.

The new scheme which started in October 2009 has shown an increase of 20% more people recycling household rubbish after 10,000 people were invited to take part in the trial. Phase 1 will end in April 2010 when Halton borough councillors will meet to discuss extending the scheme to the whole borough.

RecycleBank rewards households with shopping vouchers for Leisure centres, local; retailers, M&S, MacDonald’s, Subway and lots more for the amount of materials that are put in their blue recycling bins. Households have the opportunity of earning on average around £135 in rewards every year.

RecycleBank is a great recycling program that will benefit national and local retailers, customers and the environment. The scheme is expected to roll out across the whole of the UK in the near future.

Householders in the Taunton Dean area of Somerset will pay an extra 2.5% on their council tax from February 2011 to pay for recycling schemes.

Ross Hanley, the council leader in the area said recycling is people’s top priority. He also said that around 5000 householders in the area already have doorstep recycling.

Many people in the Taunton area are sending plastics and cardboard to landfill or have to drive to recycling centres to dispose of it correctly, a doorstep recycling service would make a huge difference.

The higher rate of council tax in the area would mean that a band D property would pay an additional £135 per year.

The extra money will also pay for the under 16’s and over 60’s to go swimming in the area for free.

With the UK still not hitting EU recycling targets many people are starting to ask why we are nearly ten years behind the rest of Europe when it comes to recycling.

In the 1990’s the UK was only recycling less than 5% of all waste that was created whilst other countries in Europe like Germany were already recycling up to as much as 50% of their citizen’s waste.

The government is now being blamed for holding back the recycling rates in the UK because it took them so long to raise landfill fees. Back in 1996 businesses only had to pay £7 per tonne to dump rubbish in landfills compared to today’s rate which is almost £50 per tonne. With today’s charge being applied to every council in the UK it has made people recycle more even if it comes 10 years late.

People are also blaming the government for not creating more national recycling regulations as instead most of the responsibility has been put on the shoulder of local councils.

Flats in London are to have rubbish chutes updated and rubbish collection points moved closer to doorways to encourage more people to correctly recycle waste, under new proposals by London Mayor, Boris Johnson.

The new plans are designed to reduce the amount of the capital’s waste going to landfill and help save money for councils and taxpayers.

In order to carry out these plans, Mr Johnson will urge the London Waste and Recycling Board to allocate funds to help adapt London’s flats.

The mayor of London has also published his waste strategy which includes writing to borough councils to help boost recycling rates. Apart from being good for the environment it’s hoped the new strategy will help avoid massive landfill taxes and more expensive council tax bills in the future.

According to one of the largest recycling companies in the UK, public awareness of recycling smaller electronic devices still needs to be increased if the UK will hit EU recycling targets.

This latest announcement is especially true if recycling targets are changed from market based to weight based which are currently being considered by the EU. Market based targets would be much higher to hit as home appliances such as fridges and washing machines contribute to weight goals, market based targets would require a certain number of specific devices to be recycled.

If market based targets are introduced its expected that the UK will fall significantly short of recycling targets set by the European Union’s directive.

Small electronic devices cause a big threat to the environment as when they end up at landfill they release dangerous chemicals that leach into the soil and can not only kill natural inhabitants but could also end up contaminating our own drinking water.

Recycle mobile phones and MP3 players for cash

When clearing out the house many of us will find old and unwanted items that have no use, most of these items will be thrown in the bin and end up at landfill. By following this guide not only can you reuse or recycle old household items and do your bit for the environment but also it will help you get some extra money in your pocket.

Batteries

Everyone has old and unwanted batteries knocking about their homes but what can we do with them once they have no power? By February 2010 it will be law for any retailer selling over 32kg of batteries to provide a free battery collection. Many big shops including Tesco already have these in their stores; more details can be found at Battery Back.

Light bulbs

Most people will throw an old light bulb straight in the bin once it’s run out, but there are more environmentally friendly alternatives. The first is to see if your local council will accept old light bulbs through their recycling program, if they don’t then put old bulbs in a plastic bag to prevent mercury from leaking out and throw them in the bin.

VHS Tapes

With many people using DVDs or digital media most of us don’t even have a VHS player making VHS tapes completely useless. Some local recycling schemes may accept old video tapes; the plastic bit may even be put in your own recycle bin. If recycling is not an option why not donate your old cassettes to your local charity shop who will not doubt be able to sell them on. If you want to reuse them why not give them to the kids to decorate and create some cool gift boxes, you could even give the tape from inside to your local gardener to scare away the birds.

Trophies / Gold / Precious Metals

Yes, it can be hard to get rid of your old awards, jewellery, antiques or other precious metals but with the price of gold soaring now is a great time to sell. Visit one of the many online gold refineries to see how much your items are worth, more details can be found on our Money for Gold page.

Yellow Pages / Phone Books

Yes, these big books are recyclable but they can’t be put in your normal paper recycling bin. You can either contact your local council some may pick up your old directories, if not visit the yellow pages recycling scheme.

Building Rubble and Bricks

Items like this cannot be recycled at your local council recycling centre and cannot be collected. The best thing to do with any unwanted building materials is to sell them as they are always in high demand, you could try either EBay or your local car boot sale.

Computer Monitors / TV’s

Many local recycling centres will accept old TVs and computer monitors as well as many other electronic goods. If you can’t recycle them and they are in good working order you could donate them to your local school or community project. For some extra money you could sell unwanted TVs and monitors on auction sites like EBay or advertise in your local paper.

MP3 Players / iPods / Mobile Phones

Find more information on recycling mobile phones or iPod recycling in these sections.

CDs / DVDs / Games

Recycling old CDs, DVDs and Games is becoming very popular online and if you have a lot to sell you could make a lot of money. Music Magpie is the UKs biggest recycling sites for these items. If you want to reuse them yourself CDs make perfect table mats or can be given to gardeners to help scare away the birds.

Printer Cartridges

These will not be collected with your rubbish but are collected at your local recycling centres. Try our inkjet recycling to find out how to get money for your unwanted cartridges.