for Midlothian Helping you recycle more What s NEW What you should recycle Why it s important Find out more inside 1
Helping you recycle more Your recycling containers Thank you for recycling your household waste. Around 50% of waste in Midlothian is currently recycled. Unfortunately this means that half of your waste is still being sent to landfill. Putting all this waste into landfill also means that valuable natural resources are being lost. To help you recycle more we have provided you with two reusable bags to help you store materials in your property and transport them easily to your communal recycling bins. You have been provided with two reusable bags to help you store materials within your property and transport materials to your communal recycling bins. White and blue bag White and red bag This leaflet will explain how to use these bags to make the most of your communal recycling collection service. Paper, cardboard, tins and cans, plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays, aerosol cans, cartons and foil. Glass bottles and jars. for Midlothian The following pages explain HOW to use your recycling containers Find space under your sink to store your bags. 1
Your white and blue recycling bag Paper, cardboard, tins and cans, plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays, aerosol cans, cartons and foil. Your communal blue bin will be collected EVERY TWO WEEKS. Remember you can recycle all of your plastic pots, tubs and trays. 2 1 2 3 4 Collect and prepare your materials for recycling. YES 3 Paper 4 Envelopes (including window envelopes) 4 Magazines 4 Newspapers 4 Office paper 4 Yellow pages and telephone directories 4 Brochures and catalogues Rinse your cans, tins, cartons and plastic containers. We accept plastic lids. Flatten your cardboard. Tins and cans 4 Metal lids from jars and bottles 4 Soft drinks cans 4 Soup cans 4 Food cans eg. baked bean tins 4 Large metal tins (such as empty biscuit and chocolate tins) 4 Foil and foil containers 4 Aerosol cans Place your paper, cans, tins, cardboard and plastic containers into your white and blue bag. Cardboard and cartons 4 Cereal boxes 4 Cardboard packaging 4 Large brown cardboard boxes 4 Cardboard tubes 4 Tetra Pak type cartons Ensure that your waste fits securely into your blue bin and that the lid is closed. 5 Take your white and blue bag to your communal blue recycling bin and transfer the items from bag to bin. 6 Take your empty bag home. It can be reused again and again. We will collect your recycling every two weeks. Rigid plastic food and drink packaging 4 Plastic bottles 4 Plastic tubs, pots, trays and punnets NO 8 8 Shredded paper 8 Do not place plastic bags in your blue bin 3
Your white and red recycling bag Glass bottles and jars Your communal red lidded bin will be collected EVERY TWO WEEKS. Do not put tins and cans in your red lidded bin. These can be recycled in your blue bin. 4 1 Collect and prepare your materials for recycling. YES 3 Glass bottles and jars 4 Cooking sauce jars 4 Wine bottles 4 Beer bottles 4 Juice bottles 4 Jam jars 4 Baby food jars 4 Ketchup bottles 2 Rinse your glass bottles and jars and remove lids. Lids and corks should be placed in your general waste bin. 3 Please remove jar lids and wine bottle corks. Place these in your general waste bin. Place your glass bottles and jars into your white and red bag. NO 8 4 Take your white and red bag to your communal red lidded recycling bin and transfer the items from bag to bin. 8 Pyrex dishes 8 Sheet glass/greenhouse glass 8 Broken glass 8 Glass candle holders 8 Drinking glasses 8 Spectacles 8 Ceramics (eg. bowls, plates and mugs) Please place these items in your general waste bins. 5 Take your empty bag home. It can be reused again and again. We will collect your recycling every two weeks. 8 Do not place plastic bags in your red lidded bin 5
Your household waste recycling centres Bulky uplifts Items should be placed at your communal bin area by 7am on the allocated date of collection. Midlothian has two recycling centres to allow residents to recycle a wide range of materials and dispose of excess household waste. There are containers for the following: 4 Garden waste 4 Scrap metal 4 Wood 4 Laminate 4 Rubble 4 Electrical items 4 Fridges and freezers 4 Cardboard 4 Cooking oil (Stobhill Recycling Centre only) 4 Engine oil 4 Car batteries 4 Household batteries 4 Gas cylinders 4 Household chemicals (Stobhill Recycling Centre only) 4 Textiles 4 Hard plastics (Stobhill Recycling Centre only) 4 Glass bottles and jars 4 Food and drink cans 4 Paper 4 Food and drink cartons 4 Books/CD s/dvd s Locations Stobhill Recycling Centre Stobhill Road, Newtongrange, EH22 4NU Penicuik Recycling Centre Bellman s Road, Penicuik, EH26 0AA (no vehicles with a gross weight over 2 tonnes are permitted) Opening Times: Monday Sunday: 9:30am 4:15pm A special collection service is offered to householders, commonly known as a bulky uplift, for items that are too large to fit into your general waste bin. Each household is entitled to one free uplift each year, during which up to seven items can be uplifted. Items should be counted separately, eg. a double bed is a bed base plus a mattress and counts as two items. The free uplifts cover items such as furniture, furnishings, toys and other household goods. For other items a charge may be made. A charge is made for the uplift of fridges and freezers. How to book a bulky waste collection Tel: 0131 561 5284 Web: www.midlothian.gov.uk/bulky-uplift Do you have an item someone else could use? Midlothian Advice and Resource Centre accepts furniture and white goods in good condition. For more info call 0131 663 8888 or visit www.midarc.org 6 Please ensure that all recyclable material is separated before you visit the site. Staff are on site to offer advice and direct you to the correct container. 7
Questions and answers Q Why don t you accept plastic carrier bags/plastic wrap for recycling? A Plastic bags and film cannot be recognised by the automated sorting equipment, causing miss-sorting and the rejection of otherwise good quality materials. Plastic bags and film can also become tangled in the machinery. Many supermarkets have take-back schemes for carrier bags or provide incentives for reusing them. Plastic film/bubble wrap can also be recycled as part of these services. What happens to the materials I recycle? The materials we collect from your blue bins are sent to a Materials Recycling Facility (MRF) where different materials are identified and separated. The various materials are then sent to reprocessing outlets where they are turned into new products. Your glass bottles and jars are recycled into new glass items. Q Can I have additional recycling bins? A All flats should have been provided with sufficient bins to hold the recyclable materials produced by all residents over the fortnightly collection period. If extra bins are required and there is space to store these securely, call us on 0131 561 5284. By recycling, together we can save money, support jobs and protect the environment The materials we throw away are valuable and recycling helps the economy by creating jobs locally as well as in the Scottish recycling industry. Recycling is more efficient it uses less energy and reduces the carbon emissions compared to using raw materials. Recycling reduces the demand for raw materials, helping to protect natural habitats. Midlothian Council Waste Management * recycling@midlothian.gov.uk ( 0131 561 5284 8
Communicating clearly If you would like more information on any of Midlothian Council s recycling services, call 0131 561 5284 email recycling@midlothian.gov.uk or visit www.midlothian.gov.uk/recycling for Midlothian