Recycle right this Christmas – every item counts

‘Tis the season to recycle for all it’s worth. Why? Because it’s easy to do, it saves space in the grey rubbish bin, and saves many thousands of pounds.

This is the message from Bury Council as we head into the festive season when, collectively, we generate loads of extra waste.

The council is also calling on residents to make sure they know which bin to put out on what day by signing up for free collection reminders. More than 20,000 households already benefit from the reminder service which helps avoid the frustration of forgetting to put a bin out.

Over the Christmas period most collections are planned to take place one day later than usual. All bins should be out by 7am as collection times can vary and all vehicles should be parked where they won’t obstruct collection vehicles.

Collections scheduled for:

• Tuesday 26 December will change to Wednesday 27 December

• Wednesday 27 December will change to Thursday 28 December

• Thursday 28 December will change to Friday 29 December

• Friday 29 December will change to Saturday 30 December

• Collections return to normal from Tuesday 2 January 2018

Councillor Alan Quinn, cabinet member for the environment said:“It really is important that everyone does their bit to recycle; not only is it the right thing to do, it saves thousands of pounds too.

“We are delivering new collection calendars before Christmas but people do often forget to put their bins out over the festive season, so a timely reminder of which collection is due can be a really helpful prompt. As well as being free, it’s quick and easy to sign up – just visit our website at www.bury.gov.uk/recycling.”

Bury residents can check what goes in which bin at www.bury.gov.uk/aboutyourbins but here’s a quick reminder for some of the more common Christmassy items.

• In the green bin - Christmas cards (no glitter), wrapping paper (paper only, not foil), cardboard boxes, paper party hats, cardboard gift tags and paper and card from Christmas crackers.

• In the blue bin - empty drinks bottles and cans, foil cases from mince pies, foil oven trays (washed only) and aerosol ‘squirty cream’ cans.

• In the brown bin - all cooked and uncooked food waste, including plate scrapings, leftover Christmas pudding, mince pies, turkey meat, skin and bones, vegetable peelings, leftover sprouts and tangerines.

• Remember! Food waste must only be recycled in the free compostable liners provided, or put loose inside the bin – don’t use plastic bags. Rolls of liners can be requested on collection day or are available for collection from local libraries.

Real Christmas trees can also be recycled in the brown bin – don’t forget to remove all decorations, lights and the wooden base, then chop it up so it fits inside with the lid fully closed. Alternatively, take them to any household waste recycling centre in Greater Manchester.

ENDS

Press release issued: 20 December 2017.