Christmas round-up

Oxfordshire Waste Partnership delivers festive message

The partnership, which asks Oxfordshire residents to reduce, reuse and recycle, claims it collects an average of 1,000 extra tonnes of waste after Christmas, costing 100,000 in disposal costs.

To combat the problem, the partnership has published turkey and sprout recipes to reduce food waste, send eCards in place of traditional paper cards, and compost Christmas trees.

A spokeswoman for Oxfordshire Waste Partnership said: Some 80% of waste is recyclable, everything from paper and tins to aerosols and tetra paks. Just make sure everything you use is as recyclable as possible.

Viridor produces West Sussex Christmas film

Staff at Viridors household waste recycling sites have made a short Christmas film to spread the message of recycling over the festive season.

The film features a choir singing The Twelve Days of Christmas with the lyrics adjusted to suit the theme of recycling.

For instance, one line of the popular song has been changed to: On the first day of Christmas West Sussex recycled for me an Alan Partridge DVD.

The HWRSs, which close for Christmas Day and Boxing Day, offers a wide range of containers to help customers recycle as much of their waste as possible. Items such as waste electronic and electrical equipment, as well as wood and used cooking oil, are not accepted in the kerbside collections.

Viridors Education and Customer Relations Manager, Jen Hake said: We really want to make recycling as easy as possible for people each and every day and especially at Christmas.

This year, our site staff have truly embraced the Christmas spirit by making this short, fun film about recycling over the festive season to highlight some of the more unusual everyday household items our sites will accept for recycling.

The video can be viewed by clicking here.

BIU Group decorates tree for hospice event

Textiles recycler BIU Group is to take part in Francis House Childrens Hospices annual Festive of Trees event, as part of its long-standing partnership with the charity.

The event features a display of Christmas trees specially decorated by Manchester United Football Club, John Lewis and the cast and crew of Coronation Street. This year, BIU decorated its Christmas tree black and white.

All the trees are auctioned off at the end of the Festival to raise vital funds for Francis House last year the auction raised 25,000.

Wendy Yarney, commercial manager at BIU Group , said: We really enjoyed decorating the tree this year. BIU has a long standing partnership with Francis House and we are pleased to be supporting such a worthwhile cause.

Francis House provides children and their families vital care and support. Without this kind of fundraising it would struggle to maintain the wonderful service it provides.

MRWA says shop smart for Christmas

Waste prevention officers at Merseyside Recycling Waste Authority have asked householders to shop smart over Christmas in order to avoid waste.
The authority has published a list of top ten tips to reduce waste and shop smart at Christmas.

Recommendations include home composting for vegetable and fruit peel, using reusable bags, and crafting last years Christmas cards into gift tags.

Carl Beer, chief executive of MRWA, reminded residents planning is key to preventing waste.

She said: At this time of year you can end up with a lot of clutter around the house and too much material ends up in landfill. By planning what you buy, making lists and shopping smarter you will create less waste, as well as saving you time and money.

NI environment minister message for Christmas

Environment minister Mark H Durkan has warned more waste is generated at Christmas in Northern Ireland than any other time of year.

The minister said that during Christmas, some one billion cards, 17 for every man, woman and child, are sent at this time of year.

An extra 30% of glass, cans, Christmas trees, cards, wrapping paper, plastic and food waste are produced across the UK.

Mr Durkan said: At this time of the year it is tempting to over-indulge and create a small mountain of waste in the home, especially food waste. I know I can be as guilty of this as the next person, but with a little thought and a few simple changes, we can all do our bit to help the environment as well as saving a few extra pounds in the purse and on the waist!

Often Christmas gifts and cooking do create more packaging and food waste than at other times of the year, so take the time to use your recycling bins and visit your local council recycling centre.

Why not resolve to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle in 2014.