19/12/2024: Recycle right to avoid Santa's naughty list this Christmas!

Breckland Council is encouraging residents to make sure they stay on Santa's nice list by reducing, reusing, and recycling festive waste this Christmas. 

The council has published a list of common festive items to help residents identify what can be recycled in their household recycle bins, as well as what can't be. 

Things like paper and card, glass bottles and jars, food and drink cartons, metal tins, and plastic tubs, bottles, and trays can go into Breckland residents' black household recycling bins, ensuring they can be recycled to make new products.  

People are also being reminded to ensure all recyclable rubbish is clean and dry before putting it in recycling bins and that their recycling is kept loose, not bagged up. 

But not everything can be recycled, with people being advised to avoid using cards and wrapping paper covered with glitter, as these can't be recycled. Foil-backed wrapping paper also cannot be recycled, and neither can cards with other plastic decorations, such as ribbon and bows, sequins, glue, foil, and 3D elements (unless these are removed before recycling). 

The council is also calling on residents to do the 'scrunch test' before recycling wrapping paper. If the wrapping paper stays scrunched, it can be recycled - but if it springs back, it can't be as it likely has a plastic film. Clear tape also cannot be recycled, so residents are asked to remove this before before recycling. 

Food waste is a major contributor to increased rubbish collected over the Christmas period so households are also being urged to carefully plan food quantities for family meals and festive parties to help stop food from going to waste, support the environment, and save money. 

Some food-related rubbish - like clean foil, cartons and paper plates - can be recycled, but other bits, like crisp packets and sweet wrappers, cannot be. Anything dirty or greasy also cannot be recycled, as it may contaminate the rest of the recycling and make it no longer recyclable. 

People with an existing Garden Waste (brown bin) service can leave any natural Christmas trees next to it on collection day for these to be recycled. Residents can also take natural Christmas trees to be recycled at a local recycling centre. If the tree still has a root system in place, people may even be able to replant it in their garden for next year! 

Cllr Helen Crane, Executive Member for Waste, Environmental Health, Licensing and Sustainability, commented: "We tend to see a big increase in the amount of rubbish that needs to be collected over Christmas and the New Year period, so we want to make sure that as much as possible is recycled and the right items end up in the right bins. We encourage all of our Breckland residents to think about the little choices we all can make to help the environment over the festive season. Being greener with our consumption over Christmas and pledging to reduce, reuse and recycle more is a fantastic way to start 2025." 

Check your Christmas bin collection calendar and see Breckland's guide to recycling festive itemson our website. (opens new window)