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Recycling facts and trivia

Recycling facts about Wales:

  • Wales is the world’s second best recycling nation;

  • In Wales we recycle 65% of our waste;

  • 94% of us are regular recyclers in Wales;

  • Welsh Government has set a target to recycle 70% of our waste by 2025 and become a zero-waste nation by 2050;

  • To find out what happens to your recycling and where it goes, you can visit My Recycling Wales website where you will find some really useful information.

Food recycling:

  • Recycling food waste directly helps to tackle climate change;

  • Most councils in Wales send their food waste to a special processing plant where it’s turned into renewable energy;

  • The process of turning food waste into energy is called “anaerobic digestion”;

  • EVERY council in Wales offers a local food waste recycling service;

  • Most people in Wales recycle their food waste;

  • Recycling 79 tea bags can generate enough electricity to power a hairdryer for 10 minutes;

  • 1 recycled banana peel can produce enough energy to charge 2 smartphones;

  • A caddy full of food waste can generate enough electricity to power a fridge for 18 hours.

Glass and metal recycling:

  • Both glass and metal can be recycled again and again without losing any of its quality;

  • Around 95% less energy is used to make glass and metal items from recycled materials compared with using 'raw’ or ‘virgin' materials;

  • Glass and metal items that can be recycled from the bedroom and bathroom include perfume/aftershave bottles, deodorant, hairspray and shaving gel aerosols;

  • Recycling 1 empty drinks can saves enough energy to power a shower for more than 5 minutes;

  • Recycling 1 aerosol can generate enough energy to power a shower for 8 minutes;

  • Recycling 1 glass wine bottle stops nearly 4,000 cars’ worth of CO2 getting into our atmosphere.

Plastic recycling:

  • Most household plastic items can be recycled;

  • Plastic bottles that can be recycled from the bathroom include hand wash, body wash, shampoo and conditioner bottles, bubble bath bottles and plastic detergent bottles;

  • 90% of Welsh citizens recycle their plastic toiletry bottles. 92% recycle plastic drinks bottles;

  • It takes 75% less energy to make a plastic bottle from recycled plastic compared with using 'raw’ or ‘virgin' materials;

  • Recycling one plastic detergent bottle saves enough energy to charge 6 iPads;

  • Recycling one shampoo/ conditioner bottle generates enough energy to boil 2 kettles;

  • Recycling three 500ml water bottles generates enough energy to power a hairdryer for 10 minutes.

Card and paper recycling:

  • 92% of people in Wales recycle their cardboard;

  • Cardboard that can be recycled from the bathroom include toothpaste boxes, toiletry boxes and toilet roll tubes;

  • 1 recycled toilet roll tube saves enough energy to charge your smartphone twice.

BE MIGHTY. RECYCLE.

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