Andy Dawe, material sector manager for glass, said: “Lack of collection infrastructure is a barrier to increased glass recycling, and if this is not expanded, the UK is unlikely to meet future EU targets.”
Commenting on a study released last week, which revealed that only one in 10 UK households are offered kerbside collection of glass, Mr Dawe said that kerbside schemes were vital to the expansion of glass recycling.
The study, Kerbside Collection of Glass, found that approximately 19% of local authorities provided kerbside collections for glass.
Of these, 39% had doubled their glass collection rate. Only 13% of authorities without kerbside collections had achieved this.
If all UK households were included in kerbside collections, the report estimates that the amount of glass collected would increase tenfold to 650,000 tonnes per year.
If this was all recycled, the rate could increase from 33% to 51%. The average European container glass recycling rate is 62%.
WRAP director of policy Ray Georgeson commented: “At a time when councils are reviewing their future recycling options, the report provides evidence of the vital role source-separated kerbside collections can play.”
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