What happens to my recycling?
A frequently asked question
Your 'dry' recycling is handled by Biffa Waste Services Ltd. our
current contractor, they decided what happens to Vale of
Glamorgan recycling collected.
Biffa, handling other clients' waste management services aside
from the Vale of Glamorgan Council's, seek the best outcome
(considering reasons such as profit, carbon footprint and
market demand) for each material.
Products Biffa handles includes those collected
from your kerbside, namely: paper, cans, glass, cardboard
and plastics. Similarly it is Biffa who manage our recycling
centres (or Civic Amenity Sites and bring banks), this accounts for
additional products such as electrical items, oil, batteries and
clothing - to name but a few.
Quality
We ask you to rinse items such as cans and glass to ensure that
the best possible end product is created and therefore minimum
contamination and rejection rates occur.
Destinations for dry recycling may change daily
It is possible that products that are collected for recycling
can have a different destination every day.
Think of recycling like a product featured on the stock market
(oil, tin or gold, for example), just as their prices and
demand changes daily, so do prices for dry recycling.
Truthfully, we cannot publish a fully transparent answer to this
frequently asked question. However we can give you an idea on some
of the locations and end products that your recycling may end up
as, once leaving your home.
| Item for recycling |
Possible destination |
Possible end product |
| Cardboard |
North Wales |
Egg cartons |
| Paper |
UK wide |
Newsprint and toilet rolls |
| Plastics |
The Midlands |
Fleeces and traffic cones |
| Glass |
Liverpool and Portugal |
Aggregate (for road surfaces) and more glass products |
| Metals |
West Wales |
Cars and aeroplanes |
Cowbridge Compost
They are another Vale of Glamorgan Council contractor and
handle the rest of our recycling - namely your kitchen and garden
waste. Through a process called in vessel composting, they ensure these
waste products are recycled and are turned into a compost to
enhance your soil.
Collect your soil enhancer
Our friends out Cowbridge Compost have now made it even easier
for you to collect the soil enhancer for free. Find out more. Cowbridge
Compost must meet strict environmental standards for handling
this type of recycling; rigid controls are in place daily.
You can now show up no appointment necessary, from Monday
through to Saturday (9am -5pm) and serve yourself. On site is a
trailer of compost located conveniently to the entrance barrier -
simply bring your own shovel, receptacle and off you go, ready to
carry on gardening!
Contact
Telephone: 01446 700111, email: visible@valeofglamorgan.gov.uk