Plastic is amazing. But like anything, you can have too much of a good thing. When plastic was invented in the 50s it was seen as a wonder – material. It`s cheap to produce, light, strong and can be moulded into a huge variety of shapes and sizes. Pretty much overnight, plastic transformed our world, in many ways for the better, but in many ways for the worse.
70 years later and the world is drowning in the stuff. Of all the plastic ever produced only a fraction of it has been recycled. When it gets into the natural environment, it can destroy habitats, kill animals that eat it and breakdown into micro-plastics; of which the impact on the environment and on our health we don`t fully understand.
The best way of protecting the natural environment and our health is to recycle plastic responsibly and to reduce how much we use where possible.
Not all plastics can be recycled, though. Plastic is often stamped with a number from 1 to 7 which will tell you if you can or can`t recycle that item. Read on to find out more about the types of plastic out there.
How to recycle
Empty and rinse the container and recycle from home, at work or on the go. There`s no need to remove bottle labels – this is done at the recycling plant by special machinery.
Recycle at home, at work or on the go. Flimsy plastics (plastic bags and film) can`t be recycled from home, but most supermarkets have plastic bag recycling points where you can drop these off for recycling. How to recycle PVC can rarely be recycled and definitely can`t be recycled from home. Put smaller items, like medicine blister packs in the bin. Larger things, like gutters and window sills can go to your local tip or reuse and recycling center. How to recycle Most councils don`t collect this plastic for recycling, so you`ll need to throw it in the bin. Terra Cycle does deal with lots of hard-to-recycle items though, so check them out here. Things like plastic bags, bread bags, films and frozen veg bags can be recycled at supermarket plastic bag recycling points. How to recycle PP is collected by lots of councils for recycling. If the container did contain food or liquid, make sure you`ve rinsed it clean. How to recycle Polystyrene can`t be recycled and should go in your rubbish bin. Avoid it if possible or try and reuse it. This plastic can`t be recycled from home. If you have things like DVDs and sunglasses you no longer need, donate them to a charity shop if they`re in good condition or share on platforms like eBay, Freegle, Gively or many more. Terra Cycle offers a CD and DVD recycling programmer which you can use. Otherwise, these things will need to go in a rubbish bin. 
How to recycle 
How to recycle
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