Important changes to the UK s waste regulations How this affects the way you recycle your waste Purity of raw materials High quality recycling is key to everything we do at DS Smith. That s why we re committed to wiping out the contamination of recyclable materials.
Dear Customer As you may be aware, the Waste Regulations (England and Wales) were amended this year to help promote high quality recycling in the UK. The main changes to the regulations mean that we are obligated to provide separate collections of paper/cardboard, plastic, metal and glass to our customers wherever it is possible to do so. Since January we have been assessing our service to ensure compliance with these regulations, and we have decided that collections of mixed recyclate will still be provided where it is not possible to source segregate each of the materials at our customers sites. The definition of mixed recycling over the past few years has become synonymous with poor quality recycling, and as such we have taken the decision to redefine the materials to be accepted in our Mixed Recyclate Collection Service. The definition is provided within this pack, and we have included some posters for you to put by your bins and in your staff areas to let people know about these changes. You can choose which posters will work best at your site to help enforce these changes. To support this new service we have asked our drivers to check the quality of materials in the bins and reject any obvious quality issues. We have also included an escalation process within this pack. These changes in legislation should be viewed in a positive light as they underpin the drive to ensure that waste producers and collectors work positively together to ensure that quality material is collected for recycling improving on some already impressive recycling rates. DS Smith is committed to high quality recycling and proper management of our precious resources and we thank you for supporting us in this. If you have any questions please don t hesitate to contact your regular contact at DS Smith. Yours Faithfully DS Smith
What materials can be accepted for Mixed Recycling Take a look here to see what can and can t be put into your Mixed Recycling bins. Acceptable for recycling Paper Newspapers Magazines Office paper Till rolls Envelopes Packing tissue paper not hand towels or hygiene tissue Cardboard Corrugated cardboard boxes Cereal boxes Cardboard sleeves Metal cans Empty drink cans Empty food tins Plastic Empty drinks bottles Empty milk bottles Empty cleaning bottles Clear plastic film Not acceptable Black bags Glass Food waste Food contaminated packaging Waxy label backing paper Crisp packets Sweet wrappers Drink or soup cartons Aerosol cans Paint tins Polystyrene cups or packaging Clothes, shoes or other textiles Electrical items Wood Pallet strapping Coat hangers Carrier bags Coffee cups Fast food drink cups Yoghurt pots Microwave meal packaging Food trays such as salads bowls or fruit salad packs Hand towels or hygiene tissues
Mixed Recycling What goes in the bin These items can go in the bin Paper and Cardboard Paper Cardboard Plastic Empty plastic bottles Clear plastic film Metal Empty drink cans Empty food tins These items cannot go in the bin Glass Black bag general waste Food waste Hand towels or tissues Waxy paper Crisp or sweet wrappers
Mixed Recycling What goes in the bin These items can go in the bin Paper and cardboard Paper Cardboard Plastic Empty plastic bottles Clear plastic film Metal Empty drink cans Empty food tins
What happens if your Mixed Recycling bin is contaminated? Mixed recyclate bin provided for paper, cardboard, plastic bottles, plastic film, tins and cans Bin contaminated Bin not contaminated Bin left by driver and customer care informed Collection made Customer contacted Customer given option to decontaminate bin Mixed Recyclate Collection General waste collection Customer billed for general waste