Over 80 p.c. local people happy with recycling arrangements

Despite an incredible 87 per cent of local householders saying that they recycle everything they possibly can however, less than two thirds of householders think recycling is very important to them. One in five householders said they would recycle less if they have to sort their recycling into three smaller bins.

A new survey carried out by Lucid Talk across all 11 council areas in March 2019 showed that in council areas, such as Derry and Strabane, where household recyclables (plastic, paper, card, tins and cardboard etc) can be ‘commingled’ with glass in the same bin, householders were on average 80 per cent happy with their glass collection method, compared to 42 per cent of those in council areas that did not offer this service.

Joseph Doherty, Managing Director of Re-Gen Waste Ltd, said: “These survey results indicate that by prioritising simplicity and convenience Derry City and Strabane Council is ensuring a high level of household recycling, even though a third of householders do not consider recycling to be very important to them. The councils we with work in Northern Ireland, England and Scotland tell us that household friendly schemes such as commingling recyclables, i.e. plastic, paper, card, tins and cardboard, glass etc in one bin, are much preferable to residents than any pre-sort scheme using smaller containers or bins and that it is actively improving their recycling rates,” he added.

“Local authorities need to encourage the maximum number of people to recycle the maximum volume of materials, weighed against the cost of processing the material, and the potential financial benefits from reducing landfill costs, and selling on recyclable material.”

When respondents were asked if they would recycle less if they had to place glass waste into a separate caddy, 22 per cent said they would recycle less.