A new campaign has been launched by Closed Loop Recycling with the backing of the London Mayor Boris Johnson to support the British recycling industry.
The UK is sitting on top of 1.4 million tonnes of untapped resource in the form of post-consumer plastic that could drive the UK recycling industry to the next level.
To coincide with National Recycle Week from 18 to 24 June, Closed Loop Recycling has launched a specially designed logo to accompany its ‘We Need Your Bottles’ campaign.
Boris Johnson said: “Taking time to chuck unwanted plastic bottles into the recycling bin, rather than your rubbish bin, is not only good for the environment, but great for our wallets too. Recycling saves Londoners money, with the added bonus of creating jobs in London.”
Around 1.8 million tonnes of post-consumer plastics are generated every year in the UK, with nearly a third of this plastic bottles. This is equivalent to 23.2 billion bottles.
However, according to Closed Loop Recycling, 300,000 tonnes of good quality plastic is still sent to landfill each year, and 70 per cent of bottles are shipped abroad.
Closed Loop Recycling chief executive Chris Dow said: “’We Need Your Bottles’ is all about educating people about the importance of mining Britain’s urban forest. Used plastic bottles are a valuable resource to the UK recycling industry, which has the knowledge and technology to recycle them for the future.
“By encouraging consumers to recycle more than they are doing already, asking waste firms to support UK recyclers rather than shipping overseas and incentivising UK brands to use UK-sourced recyclate in their packaging, companies like ours will be able to grow further, create more green jobs and boost Britain’s low carbon economy.
“Recycling plastic bottles in the UK is best for the environment, for British businesses and for British jobs.”
