Keen recyclers invited to lead the way by becoming online #Binfluencers

A recent independent bin composition analysis has just been completed, uncovering how households across Leeds use their black and green bin.

The good news is that Leeds households already recycle over 28,000 tonnes of waste each year through their green bins, with the range of recyclable items that can be put in the Leeds green bin amongst the widest in the country.

The contents of the green bins are taken by the council’s bin crews to HW Martin in Leeds, where the material is sorted, processed and sent to sustainable recycling companies.

However, the composition analysis shows there is more that can be done, highlighting that by weight, around 13% of what goes into Leeds black bins could be recycled by simply being put in the green bin instead.

This ‘could be’ recyclable waste is predominately plastic bottles and containers, metal and aluminium food and drink cans, and cardboard boxes.

However, the waste also includes other recyclable items that should be put in the green bin that might surprise some people, including aerosols, bleach bottles, clean aluminium foil and take away pizza boxes.

Although, by weight, this recyclable waste represents only about an eighth of what is being put into individual black bins, it adds up to huge amounts across the city – 25,000 tonnes a year to be exact!

Thankfully nothing in Leeds’ black bins goes to landfill, instead it is burnt to create energy in the form of electricity and heating and the ash that is created is used in construction projects.

However, recycling is the better environmental choice, and the council is calling on residents to lead the way and become #Binfluencers by putting more recyclable waste into their green bins.

To help make this a reality the council is challenging budding video makers, enthusiastic environmentalists, and savvy social media users across Leeds to create short engaging videos to help households increase how much waste they send to be recycled.

To do this Leeds City Council, in conjunction with HW Martin, have launched an exciting new competition to win big cash prizes and become the next Leeds #Binfluencer. 

To be in with a chance of winning, create a short film or animation to show how easy and fun it can be to make a difference, by recycling at home. The videos will then be used by the council on social media to get Leeds’ green bins full of the right stuff.

The more creative your entry the better.

Visit www.leedsbyexample.co.uk/binfluencer for more info and bin-spirational ideas to get you thinking along the right lines.

Declan Northcliffe, Operations Manager at HW Martin Waste Management, said:

“We continue to work closely with Leeds City Council to ensure our Leeds facility is able to sort and process as many different recyclable waste materials as possible, key to this is making sure we can find and secure sustainable markets for each material so that it is genuinely and responsibly recycled. 

“Due to how materials are collected in Leeds through the green bin system, we believe the facility in Leeds produces some of the highest quality recyclable material in the country. We are pleased to sponsor this competition to encourage residents to put clean recycling in their green bin whilst looking again at what plastic, paper, card and metal they may be putting in the black bin, that could be recycled.”

Councillor Mohammed Rafique, Leeds City Council’s executive member for environment and housing, said: “We can all do our bit to recycle more at home, and I would encourage everyone to utilise the useful information the council provides on recycling across its website and through the Leeds Bins app.

“We know that each year there are still thousands of tonnes of materials put in the black bins that could be recycled if placed in the green bins, so it is important that we all step up and become binfluencers.  

“I am really looking forward to seeing the wide range of creative entries from keen recyclers across the city who want to influence others and help make Leeds a greener city.”