IW COUNCIL GETS BEHIND RECYCLING CAMPAIGN

COUNCIL GETS BEHIND CAMPAIGN

With Christmas now over for another year, many people on the Isle of Wight may of received shiny new TV’s or DVD players or similar electrical goods as presents.

That means hundreds, if not thousands of old electrical items may now no longer be needed, with householders looking to get rid of them. Isle of Wight Council is backing a campaign run by national organisation Recycle Now to get more people to recycle their broken or unwanted electrical equipment.

A recent survey carried out on behalf of Recycle Now reveals that 94 percent of people admit to owning electrical appliances that were given to them as gifts but are now either broken or gathering dust.

The results also show only a third of us recycle electrical appliances that we have replaced, and a further 10 per cent put redundant/unused electrical appliances straight into the bin. Three quarters of us have at least one old or unused electrical item in our house, with one in 10 of us keeping five or more of these items.

Recycle Now’s campaign aims to let people know about the opportunities to recycle and reduce landfill, and to encourage more people to recycle their broken electrical appliances instead of throwing them away.

Cllr Edward Giles is Cabinet member responsible for the environment and says “It is well known on the Island that we do not have a bottomless pit when it comes to landfill. This is one reason we are looking at identifying new potential landfill sites.

“Any form of recycling helps divert waste away from landfill – electrical goods are especially bulky and all our household waste recycling centres: Lynnbottom, Afton and Forest Road accept electrical goods to be recycled.

“We welcome Recycle Now’s campaign and are fully behind it”.

Laura Underwood from Recycle Now said “It’s easy for us all to recycle small appliances and gadgets, especially during the New Year period when many of us don’t know what to do with our unwanted electrical.

“The Recycle Now website is a quick and easy way to find out what to recycle and how in your local area, including the latest information on which retailers take back and recycle old electrical goods.

“All the information is available at a click of a button so we are hoping this will encourage more people to recycle their broken or unwanted electrical items”

The Recycle Now website can be visited at www.recyclenow.com

Photo: D’Arcy Norman