What can I recycle at Christmas?

Christmas is filled with treats and presents but when you go to get rid of the rubbish, you may be wondering what you can recycle.

Chocolate reindeers, Pringles tubes, advent calendars and wrapping paper top the most frequently asked Christmas questions to Lincolnshire County Council's waste services teams.

John Coates, head of waste, said: "Out on the rounds with our colleagues from the district and borough councils, we always get asked what is recyclable and what isn’t.

"I would say - stick to the simple four types of items going in your recycling. So that's clean, dry and loose plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays; paper and card (unless you have a purple bin/bag); tins and clean foils; and glass.

"That said, there are a number of specific items, which we get asked about."

These are:

1. Standard Pringles tubes. Not currently recyclable. Please put in your general waste.

2. Glittery or shiny wrapping paper and cards. Not currently recyclable as there are too many chemicals and components on the paper. With your cards though, if you tear off the glittery bit and any glue, you can put the other half in the recycling.

3. Chocolate Santa/reindeer tin foil wrapping or foil from mince pies. Yes – if it is clean and dry it can be recycled.

4. Advent calendars – Yes recyclable (provided they are not covered in glitter or with glued foil). Please, just separate the plastic tray from the cardboard.

5. Sweet wrappers – Not recyclable. Please put in your general waste.

6. Pizza boxes and takeaway containers: Not recyclable. Where possible, please try to reuse or put in your general waste

7. Crisp packets: Not currently recyclable in your home recycling in Lincolnshire. Check online for a local terracycle collection point. Otherwise, please put in your general waste.

8. Unloved jumpers or clothes? Recyclable, but not in your home recycling. Take them to your local bring sites or to your local recycling centre.

9. Old electricals or Christmas lights? Not in your household bins, please take to your local recycling centre.

10. Batteries - or any items with batteries in e.g. phones or toys – not in your home bins at all. Please take to your local recycling centre or another suitable collection in point in shops or supermarkets

John added: "Our 11 household waste recycling centres in the county will be open as usual over the Christmas period – only closed on December 25 and 26, and January 1. Remember, you need to book your slot at Lincolnshire.gov.uk/clickandtip."

In Christmas collections 2019, 7,064 tonnes was collected in recycling bins/bags from across the county:

This was made up of:

• 36 % paper and card (2,537 tonnes- equivalent to approx. 507 million greetings cards)

• 6% plastic bottles (442 tonnes - equivalent to around 9 million empty 4 pint milk bottles)

• 2% plastic tubs and trays (165 tonnes - equivalent to 9.2 million empty grape punnet tubs)

• 4 % tins and foils (259 tonnes - equivalent to around 16.2 million empty 330ml coke cans)

• 19% glass (1,332 tonnes - equivalent to just over 3.8m empty wine bottles or approx. 6.7 million empty mincemeat jars)
• 33% was made up of items which can't be recycled in your home bin/bag collections (2,347 tonnes) e.g. food waste, plastic wrapping, unloved jumpers or crisp packets

(All tonnages are approximate and rounded up/down to the nearest tonne)