Tag: Recycling

Rubbish heads to Northern Ireland for recycling
A new contract to process recycling collected from Histon & Impington’s blue bins will mean their contents being initially sent to Northern Ireland for sorting, instead of Waterbeach.
The contract, which begins this month, has been awarded to the company Re-Gen. Their Materials Recycling Facility features specialist machinery and is considered to be one of Europe’s most advanced, running on 100% renewable energy.
South Cambridgeshire District Council (SCDC) and Cambridge City Council – which share the Greater Cambridge Shared Waste Partnership – claim the new Recycling Facility will be able to correctly sort and recycle 19% more material than previously possible.
There will be no changes to what goes into blue bins, but 99% of of all recyclable material will now be processed, including very small fragments which are currently difficult to sort and can end up as waste.
Cllr Rosy Moore, Executive Councillor for Climate Action and Environment at Cambridge City Council, said: “The good news is that by working with a modern Material Recycling Facility, we are going to be able to guarantee an even higher proportion of what’s collected can be re-processed into even higher quality materials.”
Long-distance logistics
In recent years, Greater Cambridge residents’ blue bin recycling has been sorted at a Recycling Facility off the A10 at Waterbeach. But Thalia, that contractor, warned its customers that the facility requires a major upgrade to meet current processing requirements. Therefore, it was deemed unsuitable for any further work.
However, questions have been raised about the fact the Re-Gen Recycling Facility is based in Newry, Northern Ireland. This is initially where the blue bin recycling will be taken for sorting, though the company claims it will take over a facility in the UK mainland in the first half of this year.
Re-Gen Chief Executive, Joseph Doherty said: “Re-Gen operate our own haulage fleet and logistics service. Our fleet are already travelling from Newry, Northern Ireland to England with materials and products.
“Therefore, the collection of recyclables from Cambridge City Council and South Cambridgeshire District Council will take advantage of back haul arrangements, ensuring that HGVs already on the road do not return to Newry empty.”
Council discussions
Recycling was raised for five minutes at an SCDC Cabinet Meeting held in June of last year, where it was noted that costs were increasing. The decision to approve a new solution was delegated to the Head of Finance providing the spend was not above £120 per tonne.
The final contract is estimated to cost just under £2.34m and will be split across the two councils.
When Cambridge City Council councillors discussed the new contract proposal at an environment and community scrutiny committee meeting in January, questions were raised about transporting the waste to Northern Ireland and the challenges around the procurement process were explained to them.
Liberal Democrat City Councillor, Olaf Hauk, asked for the new contract to be deferred until “critical data” on the environmental impact was available for public scrutiny, but the amendment did not gain enough support to pass.
He said: “We are told the new contract will increase efficiency from 80 to 99% and most recycled materials will be sold on the UK market and this is encouraging.
“However, residents are rightly questioning the environmental and logistical impact of transporting waste over 400 miles from Waterbeach to Northern Ireland, a journey crossing the Irish Sea.
“You could hardly find a spot further away from Waterbeach within the UK.”
Cllr Moore explained at the meeting a lot of work had gone into finding the best option and she said the new contract was the “best option in these circumstances”.
She said she was “more than happy” to report back in six months or a year with data showing the impact and “totally disagreed” that there had been a lack of consideration about the carbon footprint.
Additional reporting from Hannah Brown, of the Local Democracy Reporting service.
READ ALSO: How well do you know your bins?
Details about what should go into which bin is available on the councils’ websites and magazines.
06/03/2025
How well do you know your bins?
To bin or not to bin… that is the question. And then should it be, green, blue or black? Despite our best intentions, the world of waste disposal can be a messy minefield. Lucy Callington is here to help you get sorted.
Even something as simple as making a cuppa can cause a bin quandary. Take-away coffee cups can’t be easily recycled, but making a brew at home can be tricky too. And even though used tea bags and coffee grounds can be tossed in the green bin, plastic milk bottles have to go in the blue… and, ay there’s the rub… the small pull-tabs from the top of the milk bottle can only be put in the black.
Unwanted wine glasses and glass tumblers (broken or unbroken) can go in the black bin, but glass jars and bottles should be stashed in the blue instead. And did you know that, if you buy fruit in a punnet, the plastic can be recycled in your blue bin, but oddly enough, the mesh nets from oranges cannot?
So if you’re trying to up your recycling game this new year, here’s a few pointers to help you play this bin bingo!
Into the Blue
Your blue bin is the go-to place for most of the items we use and discard on a daily basis:
Blue bins are the first port of call for waste
- Foil – ideally rolled in a ball the size of a tennis ball
- Cling film
- Cardboard – except if it’s wet, when it should go in the green bin
- Egg cartons
- Tetra Pak cartons
- Aluminium tubes – like tomato puree
- Bottle tops and plastic lids
- Sandwich packs – without the plastic window (which needs specialist recycling)
- Ice cream tubs
- Yoghurt pots
- Plastic fruit punnets
- Plastic milk bottles
- Aerosols
- Glass jars and bottles
- Broken glass jars and bottles
- Bubble wrap
- The foil base of BBQs
Going Green
The green bin can swallow up most kitchen waste, cooked and uncooked food and more:
Food waste of all kinds can go in the green bin
- Corks – natural only
- Paper and kitchen towels – use these to line your caddy
- Teabags
- Coffee grounds
- Tissues
- Bread
- Some butter wrappers (made from greaseproof paper)
- Bamboo
- ‘Bagasse’ food packaging
The ‘go-the-extra mile to recycle’ items…
Soft Plastics Recycling at the Coop Photo: Val Robson
And then there are those annoying items that can’t be recycled at home. While it’s tempting to hurl these in the black bin and have done with it, with a little more effort these items can have a second life.
Plastic bags, biscuit and crisp packets can be recycled at most major supermarkets in bins labelled, ‘soft plastics’. Our local Co-op also has a bin beside the entrance for these, which is emptied every day due to popular demand.
All medicines and inhalers should be returned to a pharmacy or other healthcare provider which accepts them.
Medicine blister packs can be recycled in branches of Superdrug. Batteries can be recycled in some supermarkets and shops, such as Tesco Milton; printer ink cartridges can be taken to the Salvation Army shop, or Rymans branches in Cambridge; and look out for organisations that recycle baby food and cat food pouches.
If you know of any other specialist recycling schemes, do let us know at news@hihub.info
Back in Black
If all else fails, there is the black bin – to scoop up everything that cannot be reused or recycled. And for larger items, and electrical goods, there is the Household Recycling Centre at Milton. Your black bin is the place for:
Non-recyclable household items destined for the black bin
- Fruit mesh nets
- Polystyrene and packing chips
- Mirror glass, wine glasses and tumblers (broken or unbroken)
- Pringles tubes – although sometimes these can be recycled at specialist centres
- Nappies
- Wipes – bin them to prevent toilet blockages
- Cooking oil – contained in small plastic bottles
- Plastic corks
- Sponge scourers
- Jute bags
- Wrapping paper that contains foil
- Coffee cups
- Post-It notes – the glue on these means they can’t be put in the blue bin
- Sello-tape
- Cigarettes – including butts
- Candles – these can also be melted into new candles
- Black plastic bags
- Cable ties
- Cat litter and animal faeces!
- Ash from briquettes or coal
An A-Z of rubbish
Find a full list of what can and can’t be recycled on the South Cambs District Council’s website here. And if you can think of an item that isn’t covered you can send feedback to the council here.
To find out more, visit What are my bins for? – South Cambs District Council.
[copy updated 17/1/25 and 20/1/25]
16/01/2025
From Pringles to pumpkins – a recycling round-up!
Val Robson has been out and about in Histon & Impington exploring the many different ways we can recycle and rehome our unwanted items.
It’s that time of year again when we begin to contemplate a spot of spring cleaning and decluttering, in the hope of recycling or rehoming those things we no longer want or need. We’ve all become familiar with the regime of recycling into our blue or green wheelie bins but what about those ‘grey area’ items that nobody knows where to put? Haven’t we all had those ‘can we put crisp packets in the blue bin?’ type conversations?
South Cambs District Council has a handy ‘what goes in what bin’ web page but where do we put that stuff we don’t want to end up in landfill, but is barred from our blue and green bins?
Pringles Tube recycling at the Scout Hut near to IVC Sports Centre Photo: Val Robson
Pringles tubes
Pringles tubes are a real challenge for recycling plants. While the plastic lid can be recycled in our blue bins, the tubes have layers of plastic, foil and card which cannot be separated except at a specialist plant. There is good news to share though and the very many of us who ‘pop but can’t stop’ will be relieved to hear that 1^st Histon Scouts have come to the rescue with the purchase of a bright red wheelie bin located outside their Scout Hut. The club will be monitoring the bin themselves with the discarded tubes being transported to a specialist paper recycling mill in Stainland, Halifax for full recycling. Talking to HI HUB, Group Scout Leader, Richard Martin, said, “one of our Group Executive members has agreed to keep on top of it. However, its apparent popularity has caught us a bit by surprise!”.
Lara Kingsman with a bag of blister packs for Superdrug Photo: Lara Kingsman
Blister packets
Another ‘no no’ for our bins are those blister packets many pills come in. The mixture of plastic and foil means they can’t go in the blue bin but, fear not, help is at hand in the form of Lara Kingsman, local resident and recycling hero. Every few months, via local community Facebook groups, Lara invites villagers to drop their empty blister packets off with her for recycling. All Superdrug stores with pharmacies will recycle these items and Lara regularly takes sacks of them into the nearby Cambridge branch. She took a record eight bin-liners full in January! The next collection will be in early March so keep an eye on local social media for details or, alternatively, email Lara on lara.kingsman@gmail.com for more information.
Soft Plastics Recycling at the Coop Photo: Val Robson
Soft Plastics including crisp bags and pet food pouches
Possibly the busiest recycling point in the village can be found just inside the doors of our local Histon Co-op where there is a recycling bin for all soft plastics – this includes crisp packets, sweet wrappers, plastic film, pet food pouches and plastic bags. Launched in July 2021 as part of the Coop’s nationwide recycling scheme Pam Wilderspin, Team Leader at the store, told HI HUB: “The scheme is very popular and we empty the bin three times a day. Weekends are the busiest and then we sometimes empty it more than that. Some customers have come in and asked for the yellow plastic bags that the items go into so they keep it at home and bring it in once full. We are happy to provide the bags for that purpose”.
Shoe Bank at Histon Post Office Photo: Val Robson
Shoe Bank
Step across the road and located right outside Histon Post Office you’ll find a Shoe Bank – sole destination for recycling those unwanted shoes. The shoes are collected every two weeks on behalf of Variety, the Children’s Charity and sorted into categories. Worn-out shoes are used to manufacture materials like insulation for buildings. Others are distributed to developing countries around the world where they are refurbished by local people, thus creating much-needed employment. Harry Parekh, former sub postmaster who still helps out at the Post Office, revealed, “it is very well used and sometimes we have to call to have the Shoe Bank emptied more often as there have so many donations”.
Get Swishing!
Happy Swish visitors Photo: Nicole Barton
Repair Café repairers at the Histon Swish Photo: Nicole Barton
An ingenious and very popular way to recycle our once loved clothes was introduced to Histon & Impington residents in the recent Swish events organised by Histon and Impington Sustainability Group. The idea behind the scheme is that people bring along good quality clothes they no longer wear and then spend an hour or two browsing the rails possibly taking home a delight or two donated by someone else – all free of charge. After the last event in November 2022, main organiser Nicole Barton reported, “nearly half a tonne of clothes was swapped! The remaining 140kg went to the EACH charity shop on Histon Road. We had over 200 visitors and 43 volunteers helping. As well as recycling all those clothes we were able to donate £75 to both local charity Abbey Fields and the Cambridge City Foodbank“.
Local repairers from the Repair Café movement were also at the Swish events to fix and adjust clothes. Any community group or organisation can borrow Cambridge Carbon Footprint’s Swish Kit which includes all that is needed to run a Swish event.
Plans are afoot to hold another Swish in November 2023 so look out for news on this later this year.
Micro Library and Books
Micro Library Photo: Marcus Romer
HI Library Friends booksale Photo: Cath Pennington
Back in 2018, then Impington resident Marcus Romer was given permission to take over the unused telephone box on Station Road near Vision Park and convert into a community micro library from which people could borrow, keep or contribute a book.
Alternatively, books can also be donated to Histon and Impington Library Friends who hold monthly sales on Saturday mornings in the Methodist Church to raise funds for our local Histon Library. They also organise events in the library such as the Wednesday Engage in the Afternoon talks.
Swapping and sharing
Photo: Mayur Gadge from Pixabay
For the Facebook users amongst us our community, there is also the very popular and well used Histon and Impington Swap and Share group. Established a couple of years ago by Histon resident Moira Neal, who just couldn’t bear the idea of throwing away a perfectly reuseable set of birthday balloons, the site is the perfect way to find a new home for all those things we no longer need or have space for with regular offerings including a selection of birthday balloons, celebratory banners and jigsaws. It even sees the occasional, more unusual, request such as a local young farmer asking out for recycled Halloween pumpkins with which to feed his sheep!
And for the more traditional way of donating those resaleable items, of course there is our local Salvation Army Care and Share shop. Located on Histon High Street, you are sure to find a once loved bargain or two behind its doors.
Waste Education Centre visits
If you are interested in learning more about what happens to household waste and how we can do more to reduce, reuse and recycle, Cambridge City Council run free Recycling Workshops for schools, community groups and businesses at the Waste Education Centre on the A10 near Waterbeach.
For more information contact Jon Crisp, Waste Education Officer, Jonathan.crisp@cambridgeshire.gov.uk or 07887 387977.
10/02/2023
Changes to bin collections mean easier and more frequent battery recycling
Histon & Impington residents can now leave small plastic bags containing used batteries on top of any of their bins – green, black or blue – for weekly collection by crews on their usual rounds.
Previously, Greater Cambridge Shared Waste Service asked households to bag used batteries and tie them to the handles of their blue bin only.
Batteries that can be placed out for collection at the kerbside include AA and AAA, C and D, and button cells, but not mobile phone or laptop batteries or any batteries attached to a device. These should be recycled as small electrical items.
The new system doesn’t apply to residents of flats with shared bins, who should take them to public battery collection points, such as Tesco in Histon, where staff will recycle used batteries if customers take them to the counter.
Cllr Henry Batchelor, Lead Cabinet Member for Environmental Services and Licensing at South Cambridgeshire District Council said: “…only half of the up to 1 billion batteries thrown away in the UK each year are recycled correctly. Some of those that end up in bins get damaged and catch fire. We’ve seen this first-hand with fires in our bin lorries, including near Orchard Park back in October…
“We hope that by making batteries easier to recycle regularly we can help residents to safely recycle all their batteries.”
26/01/2023
Terracycle collection for crisp packets, baby food and cat food pouches
There is another Terracycle collection this weekend at The Geographer for recycling your empty crisp packets, pet food pouches and baby food pouches. Drop off your donation anytime on Saturday 24th or Sunday 25th April (collection point is outside, clearly signed). These are three separate collections so please don’t mix different types of packets!
Baby food pouches
– empty with lid on, bagged
Pet food pouches
– clean and bagged
Crisps
1. Please flatten out your crisp packets (no folds or knots) and put them into a thin plastic bag. The picture shows a perfect example! Please make sure your bag is secured so that packets don’t fall out, but not so tightly that we can’t open it if we need to.
2. Please try to use only one bag however many packets you have – you can get a very large number of packets into one bag if you squash them down. Remember that we have to get 3kg of packets into 1 box measuring 60x60x30cm!
3. What can you donate:
  All crisp packets. please make sure they are empty (!!!)
  VERY IMPORTANT – no biscuit wrappers of any sort, no twiglets, mini cheddars, meat based snacks, nuts or popcorn bags.
These are Terracycle rules and contamination can lead to the entire box being rejected and they won’t be able to sort through every bag to check.
Thanks for your support and look forward to receiving your donations.
21/04/2021
Terracycle collection for crisp packets, baby food and cat food pouches
There is another Terracycle collection this weekend at The Geographer for recycling your empty crisp packets, pet food pouches and baby food pouches. Drop off your donation anytime on Saturday 19th or Sunday 20th (collection point is outside, clearly signed). These are three separate collections so please don’t mix different types of packets!
IMPORTANT – please sort and pack your donations and tie up your bag by the end of the day on THURSDAY ready to deliver to The Geographer on Saturday or Sunday. We will be sorting them on Monday, so this allows 72 hours after you have handled the packets (for Covid reasons – in case we need to open bags).
Baby food pouches – empty with lid on, bagged
Pet food pouches – clean and bagged
Crisps:
1. Please flatten out your crisp packets (no folds or knots) and put them into a thin plastic bag. The picture shows a perfect example! If possible please use a bin liner type bag – rather than a carrier bag that is thicker plastic (and will take up more room in the box we post them off in). Please make sure your bag is secured so that packets don’t fall out, but not so tightly that we cant open it if we need to.
2. Please try to use only one bag however many packets you have – you can get a very large number of packets into one bag if you squash them down. Remember that we have to get 3kg of packets into 1 box measuring 60x60x30cm!
3. What can you donate –
-All crisp packets. please make sure they are empty (!!!) -VERY IMPORTANT – no biscuit wrappers of any sort, no twiglets, mini cheddars, meat based snacks, nuts or popcorn bags. These are Terracycle rules and contamination can lead to the entire box being rejected. We won’t be able to sort through every bag to check. Thanks for your support and look forward to receiving your donations.
17/09/2020
Recycling collection for crisp packets, baby food and cat food pouches
Calling all Terracyclers – Crisp Packets, Baby food pouches and Cat food pouches can be left at the Geographer Cafe on Sunday 12th July. We hope this will become a once a month event.
To keep it safe for everyone and as simple as possible we thank you all for following ALL these guidelines.
1.. On Sunday 13th – please take your donations to the cafe and place them in the collection point outside the shop. (this is anytime on Sunday, but only on that day or late on Saturday)
2. Baby food pouches. please rinse and replace lid. Put them all into one bag. Any brand of baby food is accepted, and also the baby yoghurt pouches (but not children’s yoghurt tubes)
2. Crisp Packets – flatten out your crisp packets (no folds or knots) and put them into a thin plastic bag. Please make sure your bag is secured so that packets don’t fall out, but not so tightly that it can’t be open if needed.
Please try to use only one bag however many packets you have – you can get a very large number of packets into one bag if you squash if down. Remember that we have to get 3kg of packets into 1 box measuring 60x60x30cm!.
Please make sure your crisp packet is empty (obvious, but some have forgotten!), no biscuit wrappers of any sort, no twiglets, mini cheddars, meat based snacks, nuts or popcorn. These are Terracycle rules and contamination can lead to the box being rejected. Last month we did not find a single contaminating wrapper – thank you for that.
3. Cat food pouches – any brand of cat food. Please rinse out and put them all into one bag.
4. MOST IMPORTANT – during these times of pandemic, please can I ask that you sort and pack your donations by Thursday evening and tie up your bag ready to deliver on Sunday 12th. We will be sorting them on Monday, so this allows 72 HOURS after you have handled the packets. Anything eaten after Thursday can be saved for next time.
06/07/2020