5500 tonnes of Lothians rubbish sent for recycling ends up in landfill

Published on Thursday 12 March 2009 08:47

IT'S enough to make even the most ardent recycler stop and think: "Is this a complete waste of time?"

More than 5500 tonnes of rubbish sent to recycling depots in the Lothians each year ends up being dumped in landfill, a study by environmental agency SEPA has revealed.

Coupled with reports of warehouses full of old newspapers being left to rot and TVs sent for recyling ending up in landfill in Nigeria, the recycling industry's image has taken a severe dent in recent months.

It is a potentially serious problem for a process that relies on public support for its lifeblood. Why carry on washing out those baked bean cans if you can't be sure they will be put to good use?

The image of an industry on its uppers, though, bears no resemblance to the busy depot at Musselburgh where the Capital's household recycling is processed.

A collapse in the prices being paid for recycled materials – prompted by the economic downturn – is certainly squeezing business, as it is across the entire sector.

But there is none of the stockpiling seen elsewhere as some local authorities find they are unable to sell some of the materials they have collected.

In fact, Abitibi Bowater, the contractor that gathers the city's kerb-side collection boxes and on-street recycling bins, says it cannot get enough paper to keep up with demand.

"It's a well-documented fact that the price of pretty much every recyclable material has come down – paper, glass and cans. But it's still absolutely worthwhile. We are not seeing stockpiles of waste," said an Abitibi Bowater spokesman.

Its business, in common with the rest of the sector, has been squeezed. One of its major customers, Novelis, has just announced another cut in the price it is willing to pay for our discarded aluminium cans. The new price of 400 per tonne is 50 per cent less than it was paying at the peak of the market last summer.

However, Edinburgh has been cushioned from the most severe effects of the downturn by the practices used in the Capital.

"The way it is collected in Edinburgh, with all materials kept separate, means that it is high-quality, and we've never had a problem finding a market," added the Abitibi spokesman.

"This is particularly true of paper. We've got a very hungry mill to feed, 24 hours a day. We take as much used newspapers and magazines as we can."

When recycling is collected in mixed bins, there is more contamination – such as oils and fat dripping on newspapers, or getting mixed with broken glass – and it is therefore less valuable.

Some councils with large amounts of low-quality paper have found it impossible to sell at times, especially during a particular trough in the market late last year. Around 100,000 tonnes of paper and cardboard had to be stored in County Durham as a result of such problems.

The biggest problems have been experienced by councils without long-term contracts with their buyers, something that Edinburgh enjoys.

"Some councils believe that they are doing their bit if they just collect materials for recycling," the Abitibi spokesman added. "But it's only recycling if it is subsequently used to manufacture new products. Edinburgh residents can hold their heads up high – everything they collect is recycled in the true sense of the word."

That bold claim is challenged by a new SEPA report, which highlights the amount of material earmarked for recycling that ends up in landfill.

However, Edinburgh comes out well when compared with other local authorities. The 232 tonnes a year discarded in the city account for just 0.5 per cent of the materials collected.

When a stray tin of paint whose lid works loose can wreck a truck full of recycling, it is inevitable that some will be unusable. Last year, the company collected 45,331 tonnes from 125,000 households.

East and West Lothian are painted as two of the main culprits by the SEPA statistics, with 16 per cent and ten per cent respectively of materials earmarked for recycling rejected as poor quality. Both councils, though, justifiably point to forward-thinking initiatives as the reason for their poor rating. Unlike Edinburgh, they send the contents of household rubbish bins to recycling depots, rather than straight to landfill, in an effort to fish out extra recyclable materials.

Although Edinburgh's recycling rate has soared in the past decade, the local authority is still caught up in a battle for hearts and minds.

The city recycled 31 per cent of its waste last year, but could still struggle to meet the national target of 40 per cent by the end of 2010.

Edinburgh was one of the first local authorities to accept electronic equipment, such as televisions, toasters and fridges, at community recycling centres.

Here, anything that can be mended is given to the Edinburgh Furniture Initiative, to help people on low incomes furnish their homes. Other electronic goods are sold to various companies in the UK, which break them down and recycle the individual components.

Liz Goodwin, chief executive of the Waste Resources Action Programme (WRAP), says she is worried that negative publicity is putting people off recycling. The main concerns include doubts about the environmental benefits, not knowing where materials end up, and complaints that sorting rubbish is too complicated and time-consuming.

But she says independent research supports the thinking that recycling is much less harmful to the environment than burning waste or burying it in landfill.

For companies such as Abitibi, our rubbish remains much more than waste – it is still a valuable resource.

WHAT A WASTE

THE most common "waste" which has to be rejected from recycling bins includes:

&#149 Paper contaminated with food waste, oil or paint

&#149 Paper with broken glass

&#149 Tin cans with congealed food in them

&#149 Plastic bags

&#149 Yoghurt pots and other plastics which are not recyclable

&#149 Envelopes

&#149 Mixed materials, such as furniture made with wood and plastic.