Frequently asked questions
- Who do I need to speak to about my waste issue?
- Where can I find details on buying a composter at a reduced rate?
- How can I introduce / increase recycling at my school?
- Where can I recycle my old Yellow Pages?
- How can I arrange for my company's waste and recycling to be collected?
- What happens to the materials which I leave for recycling at the Household Waste Recycling Centres?
- Are there any re-use schemes available for me to buy or sell my unwanted household items?
- Where can I buy recycled products?
- What is meant by the recycling symbols on goods?
Who do I need to speak to about my waste issue?
Use this link to find out who should be contacted for each particular question. Your District or Borough Council is your Waste Collection Authority, and provides kerbside collections and 'bring banks' in your area. Hertfordshire County Council is the Waste Disposal Authority and provides the Household Waste Recycling Centres.
Where can I find details on buying a composter at a reduced rate?
Hertfordshire County Council are currently offering residents the chance to purchase a composter for as little as £15 plus delivery. Composting is a great way to both reduce waste, and generate a valuable resource for your garden. You can find more information on this offer and advice on what to do to achieve the most from your compost here.
How can I introduce / increase recycling at my school?
Your school goes through large amounts of paper which can easily be recycled. Contact your District or Borough Council to enquire whether a paper collection scheme is available. Alternatively, the Apsley Paper Trail in Hemel Hempstead may be able to collect paper for free, through their collection service. You can also help reduce waste by purchasing a composter to dispose of uncooked fruit/vegetable kitchen waste, such as apple cores. A composter can be bought at a reduced price through Hertfordshire County Council's offer. WasteAware have 'Challenge Waste' education packs for Keystages 2 and 3, which offer useful information on introducing waste as a topic into everyday teaching, and promoting children's interest in organising recycling facilities for the school. The packs are also aimed at encouraging children to reduce, re-use and recycle their waste. They have been delivered to all schools in Hertfordshire. The packs can also be accessed online here. You can also contact your local district or borough council to find out about any bins you can obtain for recycling other materials.
Where can I recycle my old Yellow Pages?
Yellow pages can now be recycled at the kerbside with your newspapers and magazines or alternatively at your local Household Waste Recycling Centre (HWRC.)
How can I arrange for my company's waste and recycling to be collected?
You may be able to have your trade and business waste be collected by your District or Borough Council, as the Waste Collection Authority. Please enquire there. Should this collection route not be possible, the WasteAware website holds information for companies who can collect waste and recyclables from your business premises, and supply material containers and bins. Please note that any waste arising from business activity is not accepted at the Household Waste Recycling Centres.
What happens to the materials I leave for recycling at the Household Waste Recycling Centres?
A vast range of materials can be taken to your local HWRC for recycling. For example, from here, paper is taken to a reprocessor where it is recycled into newsprint. Here it is mixed with water and pulped. Soap and chemicals are added to release the ink from the fibres. Plastics, metal, grit and other unwanted materials are removed through screening and centrifugal cleaning equipment. Passing the pulp through a series of flotation cells allows ink removal where the ink is floated off the paper and, following further treatment, the cleaned fibres are ready to be turned into the newsprint. The pulp is ninety-nine parts water and one part fibre when injected between two wire meshes to form a damp paper web on the newsprint machines. This paper web is passed through a series of presses and over steam-heated drying cylinders. The final machine process includes further successive treatments of pressure and heat to the paper for the optimum printing surface. For further information on recycling processes, search our A-Z of materials.
Are there any re-use schemes available for me to buy or sell my unwanted household items?
Re-using everyday items greatly reduces the amount of waste sent for disposal. WasteAware promotes the message that items are not rubbish if they can be re-used. Many household items are very bulky, and, where re-use is possible, straight disposal results in a waste of resources. There are furniture recycling projects in Hertfordshire that can collect and redistribute your used or unused furniture for re-use, to people in need, and are listed here. You can also buy used items from forums such as FreeCycle, who have groups set up for towns around the county, and have a wide range of items available for sale and collection, including toys and chests of drawers. You can also contact your nearest charity shop to see if they could use your item. You can find out where your nearest charity shop is here.
Where can I buy recycled products?
To maximise the benefits of recycling, a market needs to exist for the selling of recycled products. Buying such items makes the recycling industry more sustainable, and can have an impact on the types of materials which are widely recycled. There is a variety of places where you can buy recycled goods. For example, the Recycled Products Guide allows you to search by postcode for a wide range of household items from chairs and garden equipment to stationery, and lists the recycled make-up of each material.
What is meant by the recycling symbols on goods?
Products and packaging often have some kind of recycling symbol on them. The most common is the mobius loop (see below), which can mean that a product is either recyclable or has some recycled content. Unless the product states the percentage of recycled content, the symbol usually means that the product can be recycled. This does not mean that it will be recycled in your area. Many products can be recycled in theory, but the technology or money may not be available to provide collection schemes for householders.
The Mobius Loop
Recyclable Aluminium
The Green Dot Symbol
Make sure that you follow any guidance prepared by your local authority explaining more specifically what can and can't be accepted for recycling in your area.