What happens to your recycling?

Over 95% of the materials that are collected for recycling in Barnet are reprocessed in the UK . This list details what happens to the items we collect.

Books

The British Heart Foundation collects the books for sale in their shops.

Cans, tins, foil and aerosols

These are separated into steel and aluminium at our Mill Hill depot.

The aluminium is taken to South Wales and then to Warrington , where they are made back into aluminium cans again. Recycling an aluminium can requires only 5% of the energy and produces only 5% of the carbon dioxide emissions as compared with making a new aluminium can from the raw material, bauxite. Steel cans are taken to Thamesdown Recycling in Swindon where they are made into products such as car parts or building apparatus.

Cardboard

This is taken to Barking, for onward transport to Smurfit Kappa in Kent , where it is made into "Kraft". This is thick, brown packaging paper that normally lines the inside of cardboard boxes.

Computer and television screens (CRTs)

These are taken to SWEEEP Ltd in Kent . The screens are broken down by hand into different materials such as glass, copper, hard plastic and other metals are separated out. The glass section is given back to television manufacturers to make new televisions and the other materials are sent off for recycling.

Watch this short video: how SWEEEP recycle computer and television screens

Cooking oil

Cooking oil is converted to produce the green fuel LF100, which powers electricity generators giving back to the National Grid. Just one litre (that’s about 1/3rd of what you’d find in your average chip pan) of used cooking oil can produce enough clean electricity to make 240 cups of tea.

Electrical goods: large domestic appliances (such as washing machines or cookers)

Any domestic appliances the size of a microwave or larger are sent to one of two EMR recycling plants. One of these is in Brent and the other in Canning Town . Appliances are shredded so that the different components of it can be easily separated. Most of the material is ferrous metal which is then sold to UK reprocessors such as Corus. Any non-ferrous metal is sent to a recycling plant in Newmarket .

Electrical goods: small domestic appliances (such as kettles or hairdryers)

Any domestic appliances smaller than a microwave are taken to SWEEEP Ltd in Kent . The appliances are separated into different materials using both a mechanical process and separation by hand. This produces hard plastic, cables, ferrous and non-ferrous metals and transformers which are all then sent for recycling.

Watch this short video: how SWEEEP Ltd recycle small domestic appliances

Engine oil and filters

The containers are sent for shredding and the oil is reclaimed, cleaned and recycled. The filter metal is recycled.

Fridges and freezers

These are taken to Brent where ozone depleting substances are extracted from the fridge components. The remaining components are separated into different materials and 87% of this can be and is sent for recycling.