{"id":87626,"date":"2017-12-27T11:18:55","date_gmt":"2017-12-27T11:18:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/?guid=013f7d78d21e958844055f7d88ead203"},"modified":"2017-12-27T11:18:55","modified_gmt":"2017-12-27T11:18:55","slug":"press-release-minister-urges-households-to-recycle-as-much-as-possible-over-christmas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/?p=87626","title":{"rendered":"Press release: Minister urges households to recycle as much as possible over Christmas"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"govspeak\">\n<p>Households across the country are being encouraged by the Minister for Local Government, Marcus Jones, to make it a record-breaking year for recycling over the Christmas period.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s estimated that the UK recycled a staggering 289,000 tonnes of card packaging last Christmas. However, with the weight of paper and card not collected equating to nearly 2,000 blue whales, there\u2019s cause for everyone to double their recycling efforts this year.<\/p>\n<p>From wrapping paper to Christmas cards, mince pie foil cases to Christmas trees, there\u2019s a host of items that can be easily recycled or disposed of in a responsible, eco-friendly way.<\/p>\n<p>Local authorities across the UK are offering helpful tips, guidance and even some dedicated treecycling services to help residents recycle as much as they can over the Christmas period:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p>Trafford Council has produced the <a rel=\"external\" href=\"http:\/\/www.trafford.gov.uk\/residents\/environment\/recycling-rubbish-and-waste\/christmas-recycling.aspx\">\u2018naughty or nice\u2019<\/a> list of items that can and can\u2019t be recycled.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Cambridgeshire County Council has issued <a rel=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk\/news\/stuff-your-bins-right-at-christmas\/\">12 top recycling tips<\/a> to help residents make it a great recycling Christmas!<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>The London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham offer residents a dedicated <a rel=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.lbhf.gov.uk\/articles\/news\/2017\/01\/make-2017-another-record-year-christmas-tree-recycling\">Christmas tree collection service on certain days<\/a> and multiple drop-off points located across the borough for residents who want to \u2018treecycle.\u2019 The council estimate that it will recycle over 75 tonnes of festive firs over the holiday season.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Swansea Council has released a downloadable <a rel=\"external\" href=\"http:\/\/www.swansea.gov.uk\/christmasrecycling\">2018 recycling calendar<\/a> so that residents can start the year as they mean to go on &#8211; recycling as much as possible.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Lancaster City Council has partnered with St. John\u2019s Hospice to boost treecycling and <a rel=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.lancaster.gov.uk\/news\/2017\/nov\/refuse-and-recycling-collections-this-christmas\">raise money for charity<\/a>; for a small donation, residents can pay to have their real Christmas trees collected from their doorsteps by hospice volunteers.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Minister for Local Government, Marcus Jones, said:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Local authorities across the country are offering great initiatives to help us recycle as much as we can over the Christmas period \u2013 including the Christmas tree!<\/p>\n<p class=\"last-child\">I\u2019m encouraging households to find out what schemes are running in their area so that they can maximise their recycling and treecycling this year!<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Here are DCLG\u2019s top 5 recycling tips for the festive season this year:<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"recycle-that-cardboard\">Recycle that cardboard!<\/h3>\n<p>A lot of Christmas gifts will come in recyclable cardboard packing \u2013 especially large electronic items such as laptops, televisions and computer game consoles. It\u2019s estimated that we could make a cardboard motorway stretching from Leeds to Lapland and back \u2013 111 times \u2013 with all the card packaging we use at Christmas. Don\u2019t let it go to landfill!<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"scrunch-test-your-wrapping-paper\">Scrunch test your wrapping paper!<\/h3>\n<p>Did you know, paper or cards with glitter can\u2019t be recycled? The scrunch test is a helpful way to test whether your Christmas wrapping paper is recyclable.<\/p>\n<p>If you literally scrunch the paper in your hand and it stays in a ball, it can be put into the recycling. Remember to remove ribbons, bows and other adornments before sticking it in the recycling.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"dont-firget-to-treecycle\">Don\u2019t \u2018firget\u2019 to treecycle!<\/h3>\n<p>Millions of trees brighten up homes and offices across the UK each Christmas. These can be recycled for composting and wood chipping. The chippings can then be used locally in parks or woodland areas.<\/p>\n<p>Some councils will collect Christmas trees with normal garden waste, some will have designated collections and others will have special drop-off points. Visit your local authority\u2019s website for detailed guidance. Find out more about the <a rel=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.forestry.gov.uk\/christmas\">Forestry Commission\u2019s sustainable Christmas trees<\/a> too.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"dont-bin-the-festive-fairy-lights\">Don\u2019t bin the festive fairy lights!<\/h3>\n<p>Fairy lights and other electronic Christmas decorations may be classed as Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE). These items must not be sent to landfill but disposed of at designated sites such as household waste recycling centres. If in doubt, check with your local authority for guidance on disposing of those old fairy lights.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"you-can-go-cold-turkey\">You can go \u2018Cold Turkey\u2019!<\/h3>\n<p>Who doesn\u2019t love leftovers? Christmas dinner stays fresh for at least a few days after the big event and for months or more if you put it in the freezer.<\/p>\n<p>You can freeze cooked turkey and use it to make a new meal; if you\u2019re sick of turkey and cranberry sandwiches, why not be creative and try making a turkey curry? Additional tips and advice can be found on the <a rel=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.food.gov.uk\/science\/microbiology\/lets-talk-turkey\">Food Standards Agency\u2019s website<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"contact postal-address\" id=\"contact_40\">\n<div class=\"content\">\n<h3>Office address and general enquiries<\/h3>\n<div class=\"vcard contact-inner\">\n<p class=\"adr\">\n<span class=\"street-address\">2 Marsham Street<br \/>\n<br \/>\nLondon<\/span><br \/>\n<span class=\"postal-code\">SW1P 4DF<\/span>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"email-url-number\">\n<p class=\"contact_form_url\">\n              <span class=\"type\">Contact form<\/span><br \/>\n              <a href=\"http:\/\/forms.communities.gov.uk\/\">http:\/\/forms.communiti&#8230;<\/a>\n            <\/p>\n<p class=\"tel\">\n              <span class=\"type\">General enquiries:  please use this number if you are a member of the public<\/span><br \/>\n              030 3444 0000\n            <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"contact \" id=\"contact_171\">\n<div class=\"content\">\n<h3>Media enquiries<\/h3>\n<div class=\"vcard contact-inner\">\n<div class=\"email-url-number\">\n<p class=\"email\">\n              <span class=\"type\">Email<\/span><br \/>\n              <a class=\"email\" href=\"mailto:newsdesk@communities.gsi.gov.uk\">newsdesk@communities.gsi.gov.uk<\/a>\n            <\/p>\n<p class=\"tel\">\n              <span class=\"type\">Please use this number if you&#8217;re a journalist wishing to speak to Press Office<\/span><br \/>\n              0303 444 1209\n            <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"contact \" id=\"contact_3149\">\n<div class=\"content\">\n<h3>Social media &#8211; DCLG<\/h3>\n<div class=\"vcard contact-inner\">\n<p class=\"comments\">Twitter &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CommunitiesUK\">https:\/\/twitter.com\/CommunitiesUK<\/a><br \/>Flickr &#8211; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/communitiesuk\/\">http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/communitiesuk\/<\/a><br \/>LinkedIn &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/department-for-communities-and-local-government\">https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/department-for-communities-and-local-government<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Local Government Minister Marcus Jones encourages households to recycle.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87626"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=87626"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87626\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=87626"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=87626"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=87626"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}