London-based bag recycling centre open for business
Monday, September 30, 2013 - 11:25:14
A new recycling plant based in London has begun production this month. PlasRecycle is noteworthy for being the first facility on British soil that has the ability to recycle used plastic bags, according to the Financial Times.
The carrier bags which are sent in to the centre will be recycled via a process which turns them into plastic pellets. These can be used in a variety of ways, including to produce bin liners and other bags and will be sold to help fund the operation of the plant.
Spokesperson, Duncan Grierson, explained that until recently, a lot of the low grade plastic collected for recycling in the UK was shipped over to China. However, export bans on this type of material necessitated the creation of a domestic facility, capable of managing this waste effectively, which is why the plant was built.
Both public and private investment made this possible and it is expected to be able to recycle up to 20,000 tonnes of recyclable plastic bags each and every year, which is good news indeed.
Local councils will be looking to reduce the amount of waste which is sent to landfill, not only as a means to improve environmental sustainability but also to avoid the expected increase in the per-tonne tax, which is levied against anything that is dumped in this way.
Plastic bag use has declined gradually as consumers are more familiar with the concept of reusing old bags or opting for sturdier receptacles when they head out to the shops. Many supermarkets contain plastic bag recycling points and now you can get rid of your unwanted bags, safe in the knowledge that they will be dealt with in the UK, rather than packed on a boat and sent overseas for processing.
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