Government launches September Recycling Week

Cabinet Secretary for Environment Roseanna Cunningham has announced a week long effort to get Scotland recycling – and community groups are being encouraged to get involved.

Recycle Week will run from 12 to 18 September, co-ordinated by Zero Waste Scotland, it will aim to get everyone recycling more by raising awareness of the benefits and promoting easy ways to do more.

In the run up to the week local authorities, businesses, community groups, schools and colleges are being encouraged to get involved and take action to help boost recycling.

Launching the week this morning on World Environment Day (5 June), Ms Cunningham said: “We are lucky to be blessed with a stunning environment that is one of our most precious assets. It is crucial that we protect our resources and that’s key to our ambitions for a more circular economy in Scotland, where we keep products and materials in valuable use for longer.

“We’ve made great progress increasing recycling in recent years. For example in 2010 only 12% of households had food waste collections, while new figures show that has increased to 75%. It has never been easier to recycle your waste, but we still have further to go.

“People and communities the length and breadth of Scotland have a role to play and this September we’ll be encouraging more folk to pick up the recycling habit and do their bit for our environment.”

Iain Gulland, Chief Executive, Zero Waste Scotland, said: “Recycle Week is all about getting as many people in Scotland as possible aware of the need to recycle more and to recycle better.

“More people than ever are recycling, especially in relation to food waste, which has a huge environmental impact. But we can all be better at it, and during Recycle Week we’ll be highlighting the importance of doing our bit – providing advice on what and how to recycle best, exploding some of the myths in the process, with a series of high profile events and activities. I hope as many people as possible will get involved.”

For businesses, local authorities or community groups who want to get involved or host an event, information and support materials are available at http://www.recycleforscotland.com/recycle-week-2016