Recycling sites to stop taking cartons as Recycle More makes its mark
26th May 2023
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Recycling sites to stop taking cartons as Recycle More makes its mark
Cartons and Tetra Pak will no longer be taken at Somerset recycling sites from mid-June thanks to the success of kerbside collections.
All 12 of the 16 sites which currently take these items – commonly used for liquids such as juice - will stop accepting them from Monday 12 June.
The move is down to the huge success of Recycle More expanded collections which mean cartons are collected from the kerb every week with the rest of the recycling.
The new service has seen the number of cartons recycled more than double and the volume of cartons being received at recycling sites has reduced dramatically, making it no longer viable to collect cartons on-site.
Last year Somerset recycled close to ten tonnes of cartons each month, with less than 500 kilograms having been collected across the recycling sites.
Councillor Sarah Dyke, Somerset Council’s Lead Member for Environment and Climate Change, said: “I am proud that Somerset residents show they care for our county by recycling - it is all helping to make a greener more sustainable county.
“Kerbside collections are the most efficient way to collect that recycling, saving time and fuel from individual drop-off on site. Although we will no longer collect cartons at our recycling sites, I’d encourage everyone to continue to put their cartons out for collection in the green container.”
Somerset Council makes more than 350,000 collections a week and more than 90% of the recycling that is collected stays in the UK.
To find your local recycling site or download your collection calendar visit: somerset.gov.uk/waste.