Chorley residents are being encouraged to make use of a new service that allows them to easily recycle redundant electrical and battery-powered items rather than throw them away or bury them in hidden corners of their homes.
Seven pink recycling banks have sprung up across the borough for small appliances like toasters, mobile phones and laptops.
The items can be any age and do not even have to be working – if they have a plug, battery or cable, they can be recycled.
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The ‘Recycle Chorley’ project is hoping that having an easy option to get rid of unwanted electricals will lead to locals clearing out long since discarded products which could be repaired or rejuvenated – and put to good use by people in need of them.
The drop-off points have been set up at locations including shopping centres and libraries as part of a scheme funded by Material Focus, a not-for-profit organisation which has given £7,000 to Chorley Council to support an electrical recycling drive in the district.
Research has found that there are an average of 30 electricals hidden away in drawers in UK homes – a total of 880 million items across the UK. When they do decide to de-clutter, 39 percent of people bin the gadgets, rather than recycle or reuse them. That results in more than 100,000 tonnes of electrical items being chucked out every year.
Cllr Adrian Lowe, Chorley Council’s cabinet member for customer, streetscene and environment, said of the project: “It’s really important that we offer a service in Chorley to recycle small electrical appliances, there are literally thousands of items that are thrown away each year that can be recycled.
“We want to encourage residents that recycling is the responsible way to dispose of small electrical items, many have valuable components that can be reused as well as repurposing parts, we hope this scheme will encourage a new approach to recycling in the future.”
Chorley has the highest recycling rate of any of the 14 council areas in Lancashire – with 46 percent of its household waste sent for recycling, reuse or composting during 2022/23.
Scott Butler, executive director of Material Focus, which has funded more than 40 similar electrical recycling projects nationwide, said investing in improved collection and drop-off services and “exploring new recycling methods” amounted to “taking a significant step towards creating a more sustainable future by making it easier for 10 million more people to recycle their electricals”.
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