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Recycle More In 2012 To Help Wales Hit 50 Percent, Urges Minister

5 January 2012

Environment Minister, John Griffiths has encouraged people in Wales to keep up their recycling efforts in the New Year, and has said that an extra push should see Wales hitting and exceeding 50 percent recycling in 2012

The Minister congratulated people in Wales and local authorities on their progress over the last ten years, which has resulted in recycling in Wales rising from 7 percent in 2000/2001 to a peak of 48 percent between April to June 2011, putting the country's recycling rate in top position for the UK.

The Minister, however, emphasised that there was still a long way to go in order to meet the Welsh Government's target of 70 percent recycling by 2025.

He reminded the Welsh public to reuse and recycle whatever they can and to utilise the food waste collection service that is offered by every local authority in Wales, in order to avoid unnecessary waste being sent to landfill. 　

"The Welsh public and Welsh local authorities should be very proud of the progress they have made in increasing recycling rates to date, particularly as we are currently recycling a higher percentage of our waste than any other part of the UK," the Environment Minister said.

"However we must not rest on our laurels. A bit of extra thought and effort from all of us around how we manage our waste should ensure that 2012 is the year in which recycling in Wales peaks above the significant 50 percent milestone. This means recycling wherever possible and separating out food waste to prevent it clogging up landfill sites.

"Hitting fifty percent recycling would be a massive achievement and would mean that we are diverting more than half our waste away from landfill and gaining value from the majority of our rubbish."

Recycling　creates significantly more jobs than burying or burning waste. Indeed a　recent report by Friends of the Earth demonstrated that if the rest of the UK were to adopt 70 percent recycling, this would mean more than 50,000 new jobs. However the Minister warned that recycling alone was not the answer.

He said: "High recycling is an important element of sustainable waste management, but it is not the whole picture. If we are to meet the ambitions set out in our waste strategy Towards Zero Waste we must continue to do everything we can to prevent waste wherever possible and to become a more resource-efficient society."

Recycling rates traditionally fluctuate throughout the year, with the spring and summer months generating higher levels of recycling and composting. The Welsh Government hopes that Wales will hit 50 percent recycling in the spring and summer months.

Darrel Moore