The Natural Resources Wales (NRW) Four Rivers for LIFE project is working with Agriculture Plastics Environment (APE), Birch Farm Plastics and Afonydd Cymru to increase the collection and recycling rates of farm plastics.
Farmers and landowners will be able to recycle their farm plastic at reduced cost at several centres across the four river catchments: Teifi, Tywi, Cleddau and Usk.
Plastic pollution such as silage wrap from farms is a widespread pressure on all four rivers. Wildlife including fish, birds, amphibians and other aquatic species can be injured or killed if they become entangled in silage plastic waste. It can also accumulate to create blockages which can be a barrier to fish passage and increase flood risk.
This trial scheme aims to work with farmers and landowners in south Wales to reduce the amount of farm plastics found in rivers and improve their condition so that rare wildlife such as salmon, lamprey and otter can thrive.
Farmers and landowners can now take their farm plastic to ‘drop off centres’ that will be set up at various livestock markets/sites in Talsarn near Lampeter, Crymych, Llandovery, Sennybridge, Raglan and potentially Carmarthen.
A 2023 report by WRAP which reviewed the status of plastic use in UK farming highlighted that the UK currently has an agri-plastic recycling rate of between 20-30%. This is low in comparison to other European countries such as Germany, France and Ireland who have recycling rates of 65%, 80% and 90% respectively.
Protecting rivers
Ian Creasey from APE said: “Learning from successful markets in Europe, ‘drop off centres’ significantly help farmers in recycling their used farm plastics and is a key focus of this trial. This scheme is dedicated to supporting farmers to recycle their agricultural plastics, and by so doing help protect these rivers from potential plastics pollution.”
In 2024, West Wales Rivers Trust (WWRT) carried out a survey of 100 farms to review current practices around disposal of agricultural plastics in Carmarthenshire and across Wales.
The results from this survey showed that cost is one of the main barriers preventing more farmers recycling their silage plastic waste.
Cheryl Birch from Birch Farm Plastics said: “While we continue to collect directly from farms throughout Wales, by increasing the number of drop off centres, we aim to increase the recycling rates of agricultural polythene and, through the collaboration with Four Rivers for LIFE and APE, provide a lower cost option to farmers using the service.”
“Our costs are lower when collecting from drop off centres, so we are also able to pass that saving onto farmers and promote the recycling option for waste plastics for the benefit of farmers and the environment.”
The Four Rivers for LIFE Project is funded by the EU LIFE Programme with support from Welsh government and Welsh Water.
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