Third of councils now offer carton collections

Waltham Forest and West Oxfordshire District are the latest councils to introduce carton kerbside collection, bringing the total figure to a third nationally, rising to 61% in London.

West Oxfordshire District Council’s interim head of street scene, John Parkinson, said: “We started a new waste and recycling service at the end of 2010 and this has enabled us to introduce beverage carton recycling from April this year.

“Previously, residents could take these cartons to a local recycling facility, but … we feel it is important to make recycling as simple as possible for our residents.”

ACE UK chief executive Richard Hands added: “The beverage carton industry has shown what can be achieved when building a nationwide recycling infrastructure from scratch, in less than four years.”

Overall 88% of households in the UK now have access to carton recycling – either through kerbside collection or bring banks. Beverage cartons such as Tetra Paks are recycled using a pulping process, where the paperboard and non-fibre layers are separated and turned into new materials.

The wood fibres can be used to produce new high-strength paper products, such as envelopes and carrier bags, while the polymer and foil layers can be recycled or used for energy recovery.

Maxine Perella