Moray households already had the best recycling record in the north and north-east – but now the service has got even better.
Talks between the council and contractors Wyllie Recycling have led to more plastics being accepted in purple wheelie bins.
Changes mean that plastic marked PP5 can now be recycled.
Moray households currently have the third best recycling record in the country with 59% of household waste recycled – behind only Angus and East Renfrewshire in the national statistics collected by Sepa.
What is now collected in purple bins?
- Yoghurt and margarine tubs
- Bathroom and shower bottles
- Cleaning and disinfectant bottles
- Tablet and medicine bottles
What should still go in green general waste bin?
- Cling film and carrier bags
- Crisp packets
- Coffee pods
- Plastic toys
What happens to our recycling?
Plastic and cans collected from households in Moray are processed by social enterprise Moray Reach Out, which provides training for vulnerable adults.
They are then collected by Wyllie Recycling and taken to their brand-new facility in Perth to identify and remove items of general waste.
Clean plastics are compressed into one-tonne bales then separated, washed and flaked into pellets to make items including drink bottles, fleeces, benches and toys.
Mike Neary, Moray Council’s waste manager, said: “We already know that residents in Moray are among the best at recycling in Scotland and we want to make it even easier for them to recycle more from the kerbside.
“What really makes a difference is how clean the contents of your purple bin are, so please take a few moments to rinse plastics and cans to remove leftover food and drink before popping them in the recycling bin.
“This helps ensure the recycling isn’t contaminated. And, importantly, please don’t put needles in your purple bin, these should go in dedicated sharps recycling containers.”