Recycled recycling education centre to open in Islington

The “i-recycle” centre is made using recycled material, including chairs and table-tops made from recycled industrial chopping boards and puzzle games made of plastic bottles.

Experts from the Science Museum have helped install touchscreen technology for the Islington recycling education centre

The council has developed the centre, at the household waste recycling centre on Cottage Road, working with experts from the Science Museum. It features touch-screen displays, games and videos to teach local youngsters and adults about recycling and waste issues. The centre has been designed to be accessibly to groups of all ages and all abilities.

Visits to the centre will be by appointment only, but free for Islington schools and community groups. Visitors will learn about the UK’s waste difficulties, how to reduce waste by recycling at home and will be shown some of the things that can be made from recycled waste.

Engaging
Cllr Bridget Fox, Islington’s executive member for sustainability, said: “This is a fun and engaging way to get people interested in protecting our environment. The amount of rubbish we produce in London alone is enough to fill an Olympic-size swimming pool every four hours, and we are running out of space to put it in.

“The i-recycle centre is a novel, entertaining and educational way of getting a serious message across to people of all ages – particularly the young,” Cllr Fox added.

The i-centre has been designed for groups of all ages to learn about waste issues

Islington is one of a group of London boroughs that works with the North London Waste Authority to recycle and dispose of its waste. The council is aiming to reach an 18% household waste recycling rate by the end of this year in order to meet its government targets.

Cllr Fox said: “In Islington we currently recycle 15% of our household rubbish and we are aiming even higher than that. To do that we must not only keep local people informed about what and where they can recycle, but we must also get them involved. I am sure the i-recycle centre will prove popular while helping us to achieve that goal.”

• Update (08/07/05): Following the events in Central London on July 7, it has been decided to postpone the launch of the i-recycle centre (planned for July 11). The council is to reschedule the launch date – probably for the start of the school year, it said.