New life for old wheelie bins

You may think that when a wheelie bin or recycling collection box has been damaged that’s pretty much the end of its useful life in the waste collection process. However not anymore it seems thanks to the efforts of bpi.recycled products. The business, which ranks as the largest reprocessor of waste polythene in Europe with the ability to recycle in excess of 70,000 tonnes of polythene scrap per annum, has developed a new scheme that can give old wheelie bins and recycling boxes a second lease of life as outdoor furniture, building films and a number of other award winning products. The new initiative is already being employed by various local authorities across the UK. The scheme entails a waste technical team from bpi.recycled products assessing the condition of the wheelie bins to be reprocessed and then determining the most appropriate logistical solution to get them to one of the firm’s Environment Agency accredited recycling sites across Great Britain. Once there, the bins are recycled into feedstock which can then be used to create items like bpi.recycled products’ Plaswood range of plastic wood products, its Green Sack® range of refuse sacks and various building films such as damp proof membranes. Naturally, the scheme delivers a number of clear environmental benefits such as diverting waste from landfill. It also offers local authorities access to one of the lowest carbon footprint options for wheelie bin disposal currently available. All of the bins are reprocessed by bpi.recycled products at UK plants. This is not always the case and a recent DEFRA report highlighted that as much as 65% of the UK’s polythene waste is actually exported, meaning the benefits of recycling are somewhat offset by the creation of new products with high product miles. Commenting on the scheme, Guy Coates, Marketing Director at bpi.recycled products said: “bpi.recycled products already uses its considerable expertise and infrastructure to reclaim and remanufacture scrap from a number of different sources. Wheelie bin recycling is a natural extension of this and gives us yet another way of closing the loop on polythene waste.” - ENDS - Image: Wheelie bins.jpg

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