Fifers Urged To Recycle Over Festive Period

Fife council have come up with 12 top tips to reduce your 'waste-line' over Christmas.

People generate more rubbish at Christmas than at any other time of the year, so Fife Council is encouraging residents to be aware of their waste and reduce the amount that is sent to landfill by recycling.

Fife Council provides comprehensive waste and recycling services, and wants people to think carefully about how they dispose of their rubbish and unwanted items.

Cllr John Wincott, Sustainability Champion for Fife Council, said: 

''I would like to thank Fife residents for all their efforts this year. Fifers are recycling more than ever and we want people to keep this up over the holidays to ensure that as much household waste as possible is recycled. Christmas and New Year is the time of year when we see lots of packaging that needs to be disposed of. With recycling easier than it has ever been, everyone can play their part by disposing of festive waste responsibly, either in their kerbside bins or at a recycling centre.''

12 Days of Christmas Recycling

Here are some tips to help people dispose of their waste over the festive period:

Day 1 – Sofa and other furnishings
If you order a new sofa for Christmas, contact www.furnitureplus.org.uk or www.castlefurniture.org who will come and collect your old sofa, or other furniture, free of charge as long as they are in a good condition.

Day 2 - Have a happy e-Christmas
Reduce the amount of waste that you generate by buying e-gifts, such as vouchers, e-books or experience days, and consider sending e-cards.

Day 3 – Tins, cans and plastic bottles
Eating and drinking are two of our favourite things over Christmas, but once you are finished, please remember to recycle cans and plastic packaging. In Fife you can recycle all of your plastic bottles, pots/tubs, trays, and plastic film. They can all go in your green bin, or be taken along to your local Recycling Point or Centre.

Day 4 – Electrical goods
We all love receiving electrical goods for Christmas, but do recycle your old and used goods responsibly by taking them along to your local Recycling Centre, or donate them to a local charity shop. 
Find your nearest charity shop: www.charityretail.org.uk/find-a-charity-shop

Day 5 – Used batteries for your electrical goods
Many products don’t need batteries, such as wind-up radios, torches and solar-powered garden lights. These are cheaper to run and more environmentally friendly. If you do need to use batteries, remember to recycle them. Most supermarkets and electrical shops will now collect batteries for recycling.

Day 6 – Wrapping paper and cardboard 
Once Christmas day is over, recycle your paper and cardboard responsibly and safely. You can put your unwanted paper and cardboard into your grey bin, or take it to your local Recycling Centre.

Day 7 – Food leftovers
Recycle all of your food waste (cooked and uncooked) in your brown bin. Even your turkey carcass can be recycled! You can also donate any non-perishable foods to your local foodbank.

Day 8 – Recycling your old bicycle
Got a new bike for Christmas? There are many ways that you can recycle your old bike. Please contact www.fifebikeworks.org.uk, who will happily welcome your donated bike, or take it to your local Recycling Centre.

Day 9 – Recycle your old clothes and Christmas jumpers
In the UK, we spend in excess of £300 million on Christmas jumpers every year. After your Christmas clear out, please take your unwanted clothes to your local charity shop or local Recycling Centre.

Day 10 – Unwanted gifts
Not all the gifts we receive at Christmas are wanted, so why not drop them off at your local Charity Shop, or pass them onto someone who will treasure them.

Day 11 – Glass jars and bottles
Once the chutneys, jams and drink have been consumed it is time to think about re-using or recycling. Please dispose of your glass responsibly at your local Recycling Point or Centre.

Day 12 – Recycle your tree 
Once Christmas is over and it is time to take down the decorations, you can recycle your real Christmas tree in your brown bin, or take it to a Recycling Centre. Please make sure trees are cut up so that your bin lid can be closed.

The council say that Recycling Points are extremely busy during December, so please don't leave material out with the banks as this can lead to fines of £200. Fines for fly-tipping start at £200 but can increase to £40,000. Local people can report any instances of fly-tipping, either online at www.fifedirect.org.uk/flytipping or by phone 03451 55 00 22.