Category: Company News

Bag for life or just a cupboard full of good intent

As one of the UK’s leading suppliers of waste balers we always keep abreast of what’s happening in the sector and there was good and bad news last week following WRAP’s latest statistics.

The bad news was that there has been an increase in the number of single use carrier bags between 2011 and 2012, with England seeing the greatest increase of 4.4%.The good news is that despite this increase, the total...

English recycling rates on the up

The Chartered Institution of Wastes Management (CIWM) revealed pleasing statistics this month which highlighted that recycling rates in England have continued to improve.

Household waste recycling for July-September 2012 rose to 47% – a 2% increase on the same period in 2011 – and the level of landfilled waste fell by 9%. England’s annual recycling rate also grew to 44% which, despite being only a small improvement in comparison to the 43% achieved during 2011/12, is another enco...

Momentum needed for UK to hit 2020 recycling targets

All of our recycling efforts are paying off it seems. When analysing recycling rates from the last ten years, the UK is reported to have recorded a faster rate increase than any other EU member state. In real terms this means that, if this annual rate of increase can be maintained until 2020, we will, as a nation, achieve the milestone 50% MSW recycling target that we are legally bound by.

Such a revelation should inspire us all to maintain the environmentally responsible practices that...

WRAP showcases the value of waste

Recycling pioneers at WRAP made an interesting announcement in late 2012 when they highlighted that, if a landfill ban was introduced in this country, the UK economy could experience a net benefit of £2.1 billion.

Following on from a 2010 study, WRAP’s most recent report Landfill Bans: Feasibility Research analysed the financial and social...

Waste champion a great idea

In early autumn we read that Sita UK’s chief executive David Palmer-Jones was calling for the waste and recycling industry to appoint a “Lord Coe equivalent”, to champion growth and investment within our exciting sector.

This is a suggestion we support entirely.

We’ve heard that Zero Waste Champions are being encouraged to step forward in communities in Scotland, in a bid to strengthen the ‘reduce, reuse and recycle’ commitment amongst households across the country. Full article

UK waste management performance

This year we have become accustomed to looking at the UK’s medal table standings, following the outstanding successes of the London Olympics and Paralympics games. But last month we learned of the country’s performance in a different kind of league, when the European Commission ranked the UK eighth in terms of municipal waste management.

Having graded 18 EU member states on factors including waste recycling, the pricing of waste disposal and infringements on European legislation, th...

Landfill tax debates continues

For months the discussion surrounding the changes to landfill tax charges have continued to spark huge debates within the waste and recycling arena.

Back in May a coalition of waste firms urged ministers to rethink the controversial increase – an unbelievable 2,460% rise for some materials – arguing that for many small to medium-sized outfits this could mark the end of their operations.

Elsewhere some larger firms welcomed the decision to raise the tax on inert fines from £2....

Plastics sector on the up

At a time of seeming constant doom and gloom how refreshing to read in the media this week that the plastics sector is all set for a buoyant future?

Leading industry magazine MRW reported that more UK plastics companies are expected to increase their turnover over the next 12 months, with plastic recyclers having one of the most positive outlooks.A survey showed that sales, turnover and profitability is expected to generally rise over the next year and confidence surrou...

Home is where the recycling is

We read an interesting article this month which reported that whilst UK residents may be recycling at home, they don’t all necessarily continue their efforts in the workplace.

Office firm Avery is said to have commissioned a survey of 1,000 individuals, to help UK businesses discover greener ways of operating. Findings illustrated that whilst eight out of ten employees are encouragingly segregating their recyclable materials at home, four out of ten admitted not using the recycling bi...

Pride in the UK’s pioneering plastics plant

The media has recently been awash with news of the world’s biggest plastic bottle processing plant, which was officially opened by waste minister Lord Taylor in Lincolnshire this month.

A result of the £15m joint venture between Coca-Cola Enterprises and ECO Plastics, Continuum Recycling’s vast Hemswell site is said to now more than double the amount of bottle-grade recycled plastic (rPET) previously created in Britain. Statistics highlighted by industry journal MRW stated that Co...

Government not doing enough to raise awareness of recycling targets

A nationwide survey carried out on behalf of Riverside Waste Machinery has revealed that only 29.6% of respondents feel the Government is taking enough action to raise awareness about the UK’s waste and recycling targets.

Passionate about the country’s ever-changing attitudes to waste management, Riverside managing director Chris Oldfield was keen to understand what the viewpoint was amongst general members of the public. When analysing the results from the 1955 individuals polled, ...

Paper and board guidance sheds light on much-debated industry issue

Guidance was launched last week (as reported by industry title MRW on 5th May) to help the recovered paper industry comply with European legislation surrounding the safety of food packaging. Having welcomed this development, Riverside Waste Machinery managing director Chris Oldfield considers what this could mean for quality standards within the sector...

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