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Talking Rubbish column: 19th May
Spot the recycle swoosh
To celebrate Recycle Week from June 2 to 9 and support local independent traders in Wiltshire we've organised a special shopping challenge.
Spot the green reusable Recycle for Wiltshire jute bags in shop windows of your local town and you could be in line for a prize.
Separate competitions are being run in Bradford on Avon, Devizes, Marlbrough, Melksham, Trowbridge, Warminster and Westbury.
To enter, find the five local and independent businesses in your town who are displaying the Recycle for Wiltshire bag in their window.
Submit your entry by naming the town and its five traders and you will go into a prize draw. You can fill in an entry form online at www.kennet.gov.uk or www.westwiltshire.gov.uk
There will be one grand prize winner for all of Wiltshire, a first prize for each town and two runners-up for each town. The closing date is June 11.
Yellow Woods Challenge
Schools in and around Salisbury will be doing their bit for recycling by taking part in the Yellow Woods Challenge run by Yellow Pages in partnership with The Wiltshire Wildlife Trust, The Woodland Trust and Salisbury District Council.
Children collect unwanted Yellow Pages which are then sent for recycling. The schools which recycle the most per pupil win cash prizes and matching funds go to the Woodland Trust.
The challenge also provides educational packs so pupils can learn about recycling and woodland conservation.
Contact your local school to find out if they are joining in - and if not, ask them to contact the district council to take part.
Unfortunately, unwanted Yellow Pages cannot be put your kerbside recycling box but you can place them in the cardboard skip at the Household Recycling Centre.
Rejection Rate
The amount of rejected recycling in Wiltshire is five times better than the national average, according to new figures.
With any system collecting items for recycling there will always be a certain amount that cannot be accepted because people might have put the wrong items in or it might be spoilt or contaminated.
The lower the rejection level, the more efficient and cost-effective the service and less sent to landfill.
New figures show that nationally almost 10% of waste sent for recycling is rejected - but in Wiltshire it is less than 2%, and falling.
Chips with everything
Like most people I've got a computer at home. According to manufacturers, because it's a few years old it's something of a dinosaur so I should be upgrading.
Which is fine, but what happens to my old computer?
In Wiltshire there is an agreement with a bona fide company to take away electronic waste and dispose of it properly. Most of the materials can be extracted and re-used.
But not all electronic waste ends up being properly disposed of.
A report from Consumers International shows that parts of Africa are being blighted as illegally exported electronic waste is dumped there for people to pick apart and sell on what can be salvaged. The damage to the environment is compounded by the damage to people from the hazardous materials.
You can find out more at www.consumersinternational.org.
Always dispose of electronic equipment safely - the best thing to do is take it to your nearest household recycling centre.
This column is written on behalf of the Wiltshire Waste Partnership - consisting of county and district councils working to tackle waste in Wiltshire. We also work with contractors Hills Waste Solutions and the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust. Email us at wastemanagement@wiltshire.gov.uk or log onto our website at www.recycleforwiltshire.com.
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