Plymouth residents urged to rethink bathroom habits this Recycle Week

Whether your bathroom regime is a quick shower or a two-hour makeover, Plymouth City Council is teaming up with Recycle Now this Recycle Week to encourage residents to look and feel good by recycling bathroom items like empty deodorants and finished-with fragrances.

In the UK, almost 90 per cent of packaging is recycled in our kitchens, while just over half (52 per cent) of items are recycled in the bathroom. New research from Recycle Now found that nearly half (49 per cent) of the UK population admit to not always recycling their aerosols including deodorant and hairspray from the bedroom or bathroom. The research also found that over a third (38 per cent) of the UK population say they don’t always recycle glass items in the bedroom such as aftershave and perfume bottles after they are empty.

This Recycle Week, Plymouth City Council is asking residents to rethink their bathroom routines by highlighting the benefits of recycling these items for Plymouth and demonstrating that what goes around comes around.

Aerosols such as deodorants and hair sprays can be recycled again and again without any loss in quality, so you may see them come back in items such as mobile phones, dishwashers or even as another aerosol can - what goes around comes around!

Love singing in the shower or getting ready to some top tunes? Being recycling savvy, such as recycling just three empty deodorants, can provide these essentials to our ‘getting ready’ routine by saving enough energy to power a shower for eight minutes, or a home sound system for 32 hours.

Councillor Mike Leaves, Cabinet Member for Street Scene and the Environment, said: “We’re motivating Plymouth to look good and feel good this Recycle Week. From the last spritz of perfume to the final squeeze of a shampoo bottle – in Recycle Week add recycling to your bathroom regime, and recycling just a few more items from around the house can make a real difference.”

Linda Crichton, Head of Recycle Now, said: “Many of us have our daily bathroom routines in place - whether we’re getting ready to go to work, out for a party, or just settling down for a night in. During Recycle Week, we are looking to shake up those routines and let people know that they can do good for the environment you live in in the process of looking good. One tip is to put a recycling bag or bin in your bathroom or bedroom to make recycling an easy part of your routine.”

Top bathroom recycling tips:

• where possible empty containers before they go in the recycling bin

• remember that you can recycle glass containers such as bottles and jars in Plymouth

• remove plastic lids and caps from air-freshener, deodorant and shaving foam aerosols where easy

to do so and place separately in the recycling

• mirrors and nail varnish bottles are not recyclable and should be put in your general waste.

For more information about your Plymouth’s recycling scheme, including details of what can and can’t be recycled from around the house, visit https://www.plymouth.gov.uk/binsrecyclingandwaste/whatgoeseachbin