From newspapers to Wealden and back again
To coincide with The Big Recycle, schoolchildren from one of the District’s top schools for recycling officially opened the new paper store at Wealden’s Bellbrook Materials Reclamation Facility in Uckfield.
Instead of a ribbon, the children from Buxted Primary school cut a paper chain made from old newspapers. Wealden collects 5,000 tonnes of paper every year, which is then recycled to create 4,000 tonnes of newsprint for tomorrow’s newspapers.
“Given that nationally only one million tonnes of paper and card is recycled, while five million still goes into landfill sites, local people’s commitment to recycling should be applauded,” said Councillor Mrs Pam Doodes, Cabinet Portfolio holder of Health & Public Safety. “As a district we are now ranked ninth in the Government league table which monitors the recycling and composting efforts of over 390 local authorities.”
“Over 70 per cent of Wealden’s recycled paper is collected through our CROWN – Compost and Recycle Our Waste Now – scheme, while in more isolated parts of the district, dedicated householders take their old newspapers, glass and other recyclables to our Bring sites. Together it is a tremendous contribution to our overall recycling effort, which will be further enhanced by the new covered storage facility at the Bellbrook recycling centre.”
By keeping the paper inside, more income can be reclaimed through the recycling process which is carried out by Aylesford Newsprint in Kent. The new store will also reduce time and cost involved in loading and unloading collections.
And the benefits? Because of the energy and resource required to make newsprint from trees which includes a chlorine bleaching process, every tonne of recycled paper used saves:at least 3,000 litres of water,the electricity used in the average three bedroom house over a year,95% air pollution.
It takes 17 trees to make one tonne of new paper, but once made, paper can be recycled seven times before its fibres are too weak for re-use.
As well as cutting the paper chain to open the new paper store at Bellbrook, Uckfield; children from Buxted School were given a tour of the Materials Reclamation Facility and a talk about the environmental benefits of recycling.
Buxted is one of the district’s top five schools when it comes to recycling. During 2004-05 Buxted School collected 2.5 tonnes of recyclable material. Other top performing Wealden schools for recycling are Maynards Green Primary School, Grove Park School, Wadhurst Primary School and Holy Cross Primary School.
The Big Recycle is being held this week, June 27 – July 2, and is part of a major campaign designed to encourage people in England to recycle ‘more stuff, more often’. Further information is at recyclenow.com
To make sure recycling doesn’t lose its appeal in hot weather, here’s three Top Summer Tips that help when sorting out your rubbish:
- Wash out all cans and metal containers first.
- Push objects down as far as possible in the bin.
- Double wrap any meat or other cooked food waste before putting it in the bin.
